SC

Question 1

Why is this statement wrong : Research has shown that bananas in a container with kiwis causes the kiwis to ripen quickly.

Answer 1

‘in a container with kiwis’ is a prepositional phrase hence it is not considered for subject verb agreement. The subject is bananas and verb is causes which is incorrect. It should be cause

Question 2

Why is this statement wrong : The tennis shoes that Adele borrowed recently were taken from her car by a thief

Answer 2

This statement is ambiguous. We don’t know if the tennis shoes she borrowed recently were the ones a thief took from her car or if she shoes she borrowed recently were taken by a thief from her car.

Question 3

Why is this statement wrong : Ostriches are able to run fast for very long distances, but they are able to escape predators such as hyenas that normally catch prey by exhausting the prey

Answer 3

This sentence is grammatically correct. However, since it is not logical (‘but’ is used to introduce contrast but here both the statements before and after ‘‘but’ mean the same thing.), it is considered incorrect.

Question 4

What’s the best SC strategy?

Answer 4

You need to find 4 incorrect options and not 1 correct option. Check if option A has any grammar errors. If yes, eliminate A and all other options with the same grammatical error (scan vertically, don’t word match). If not, keep A and check other options for grammar errors (vertically) and eliminate other options with grammatical errors. Finally, use meaning to eliminate options that don’t make sense.

Question 5

Why are the following statements wrong :

1) A twenty-page document containing a description of the room in which the possessions of the governor were found when the archeologists unearthed the long buried city.
2) A twenty-page document contains a description of the room from which the possessions of the governor were found when the archeologists unearthed the long buried city.
3) My brother who broke his foot.

Answer 5

1) Doesn’t convey a complete message/thought.
2) The possessions would be found ‘in’ a room and not ‘from’ a room.
3) Doesn’t convey a complete message/thought.

Note : The main verb of a sentence will never be found within a phrase modifying a noun.

Question 6

Why are the following statements wrong:

1) Although it is clear that Koan meditation is becoming more widely used, though it is also clear that meditation of that form is unlikely to become the most popular with people in general
2) Although it is clear that Koan meditation is becoming more widely used, what is clear also is that that form of meditation is unlikely to become the most popular with people in general.

Answer 6

1) Although and though mean the same thing that is ‘in spite of’. So, this sentence structure is something like ‘in spite of’ X, ‘in spite of’ Y which is not fine for this case.
This however does NOT mean that you can’t use ‘although’ and ‘though’ together in a sentence. Eg: Although Jim is funny, and though I can afford to repair my car, I didn’t find the crash funny.
2) This statement is correct.

Other words that mean ‘in spite of’ : despite, even though. These expect a contradictory statement to follow.

Question 7

What’s the difference between ‘if’ and ‘whether’

Answer 7

A “whether” is always about the uncertainty in a choice or alternative.

1. ) Whether you study French or Spanish, you will encounter an unfamiliar language in Japan.
2. ) Whether or not I get the raise, I am going to buy that new car.
3. ) Whether you like jazz will influence your opinion of this new club.
4. ) Whether I walk on her left or right side matters a great deal to her.
5. ) I don’t know whether there is intelligent life elsewhere in the Universe.
6. ) He doesn’t care whether you serve broccoli or Brussels sprouts with dinner.

The word “if” is used for clauses that specify conditions or speculate on something hypothetical

Question 8

What is the difference between a phrase and a clause?
Phrase or Clause :
1) Ali must be older than I
2) The delegation chosen by the council
3) That stress management can be more effective than drugs in some cases
4) over twenty two years after the release of the first version of the now well known author’s book
5) Only six remain

Answer 8

A clause has a subject and a FINITE verb. Finite verb answers the question ‘when did the action take place’
A phrase lacks either the subject, or a finite verb or both.
Every VALID English sentence must have at least one independent clause. The finite verb of the independent clause is called the ‘main verb’. Hence, every sentence must have a main verb which answers the question ‘when’ wrt the subject.

1) Clause (He must be busy : present tense, must have been : past tense)
2) Phrase
3) Clause
4) Phrase
5) Clause, independent at that.

Question 9

An independent clause need not provide full context in order to be independent. It just needs to be a complete thought (a complete thought that you have need not contain the entire context or info`). Eg : Neither Mam nor her sisters are at the beach. Their health improves.
An independent clause : The primary question that the co-op board posed in response to the tenant’s petition was, of course, this.

If you remove the subordinating conjunction, a subordinating conjunction becomes a VALID INDEPENDANT clause.

1) Does this contain an independent clause? : The united states remaining a nation characterized by a spirit of capitalism despite the spread of socialism to much of the world.

Answer 9

1) No. There might be doubt regarding ‘characterized’. However, try adding a finite verb to understand that it’s not a finite verb that answers ‘when’. : Is characterized, was characterized, will be characterized.

Question 10

1) What is a simple sentence ?
2) What is a compound sentence?
3) How should a colon be used in SC?
4) How to differentiate between past tense and past participle?

When a subordinate clause precedes an independent clause, the subordinate clause must be followed by a comma. When a subordinate clause comes after an independent clause, the comma between the two clauses is OPTIONAL.

For n clauses, you need max of n-1 conjunctions.

Joining a subordinate clause with an independent clause using ‘and’ makes it one giant subordinating clause.

Complex sentence : 1 independent clause and at least 1 subordinate clause

Compound Complex Sentence : more than 1 independent clause and at least one subordinate clause.

Whenever a subordinating conjunction immediately follows a coordinating conjunction, there must be at least three clauses in the sentence.
Eg : I wanted to go scuba diving, but because I was tired from our long run, I read a book instead. Here, ‘because I was tired from our long run’ (sub) is joined properly to ‘I read a book instead’ (ind) using ‘,’. This whole thing becomes an independent clause and is joined to ‘I wanted to go scuba diving’ (ind) using ‘,’ + FANBOYS.

You CANNOT join phrases to clauses using ‘but’ or ‘and’.

Answer 10

1) A simple sentence consists of a single independent clause followed by a period. Eg : I do.
2) It is composed of at least two independent clauses. Connected either by ‘ ‘,’ (PRESCENCE OF COMMA IS VITAL AND NOT OPTIONAL AT ALL) + FANBOYS ‘ or a semicolon ‘;’.
Note however that you can still use a dependent clause in place if you don’t have ‘ ‘,’ + FANBOYS ‘, it’s just an independent clause that is not allowed.
Eg : I ran, consequently, I fell. is INCORRECT.
CORRECT : I ran, and, consequently, I fell.
3) Whenever a colon is present, whatever precedes it must be able to stand on its own as a complete sentence (independent clause).
It can be followed by : an example or a series of examples or an independent clause or explanation or rules.
Eg : 1) I love everything about straw: the texture, the smell, and the taste.
2) Please tell us one thing: how many people will attend. (Note : ‘Please tell us one thing’ is an independent clause)
3) The team defined their goals for the week: to balance budget, to support women and to address sexism.
4) He said something absolutely outrageous : ‘Shut up, Mr. President’
(In (4) the quote is being used as a list item)
4) Past tense expresses an activity, past participle expresses a quality. Try adding a finite verb to verify. Eg : Aadith, the dancer, singer and songwriter known as kurt kobain… . To check ‘known’, add ‘is’/’was’/’will be’ . Since it still makes logical sense and adding the finite verb changes the answer to ‘when’ , ‘known’ is not a finite verb.

Question 11

Difference between ‘since’ and ‘ever since’ and ‘since then’?

Answer 11

Ever since is used when you want to emphasize that something has been true from “from that time to this”. The “ever” can suggest a continuous thing and suggest against the possibility that something has happened only intermittently since:

It’s been years since I rode a bike. (intermittent)
Since joining the company, I’ve been promoted twice. (intermittent)

My back has been aching since I fell off the ladder.
(you fell off once, intermittent)
Ever since I fell off the ladder, my back aches (the ache is continuous)

Question 12

1) Difference between ‘since’ and ‘from’ ?

2) Difference between ‘due to’ and ‘because of’

Answer 12

1) Although both these words present the starting time of an action, they cannot be used interchangeably.

The doctor will be here from 10 am tomorrow – Correct
The doctor will be here since 10 am tomorrow – Incorrect
The doctor has been waiting for you since 10 am – Correct
The doctor has been waiting for you from 10 am – Incorrect
Since vs From – Takeaways
Since is used to present the starting point of an action that continues in the present and takes the usage of the present perfect or present perfect continuous tense verb.
From is used to present the starting point of action.

2) Replace ‘due to’ by ‘caused by’, if it still makes sense ‘due to’ is correct, else use ‘because of’

Question 13

Relative pronouns to know for GMAT : that, which, who, whom, whose, where, when

Relative pronouns always appear in clauses.

Relative clauses always appear embedded within other clauses. They are unable to stand alone as sentences.

Every relative clause must have a subject and a finite verb

When the relative pronoun is the subject of the relative clause, it may NOT be omitted from the clause. When the relative pronoun is not the subject of the relative clause, it can be omitted from the sentence (optional).

Before checking if clause etc. , CANCEL all the relative clauses, makes the job easier and safer. You can have multiple relative clauses joined by an ‘and’. All of which you need to cancel out.
Eg : Guadalupe Island, an island off the Pacific coast of Mexico, where about 366 unique great white sharks have been identified, and where the water visibility is among some of the best in the world, allowing for amazing scuba diving. ‘where about…identified’ is the 1st relative clause and ‘where the water…scuba diving’ is the 2nd relative clause. Both of these need to be cancelled.

A sentence’s main verb can never be located in the relative clause or the subordinate clause or the dependent clause.

Semicolons CAN be used to separate items in a list WHEN using commas would make the list confusing.

I need to purchase a dry erase board, a notebook, and a calculator to study for math; an iPad for English; and a leather journal for history. If you replace ; with , it won’t make sense. an ‘iPad for English’ is not same a ‘notebook’.
At the dinner will be Modi, India’s PM;JFK, the president of USA; and Nikita , premier of Russia. If you use ‘,’ then Modi and India’s PM will become two different entities. ‘;’ + coordinating conjunction is also valid to separate the last item from the remaining items in a list of 3 or more.
OG Q : https://gmatclub.com/forum/tropical-bats-play-important-roles-in-the-rain-forest-ecosystem-aidin-131457.html

Answer 13

Figuring out if the relative pronoun of a relative clause is implied or not shouldn’t cause issues. Here’s why : If it is absent, adding it won’t help since it won’t be the subject of the relative clause anyway (which is why it might have been implied in the first place) and the verb of the relative clause would be hooked to some other noun/pronoun of the relative clause (subject).

Before you conclude that something is a main verb, do a sanity check of making sure it doesn’t belong to a subordinate/relative/noun clause.

A noun clause can fulfil the role of a subject or direct object (noun/pronoun that receives the action of the finite verb in a clause) of a sentence.

In a noun clause, words such as ‘that’, ‘which’, ‘where’ etc that introduce the clause do not relate the clause back to a noun as the relative pronoun in relative clauses do.

In noun clauses that serve as direct objects, the word ‘that’ is often dropped.

Prepositions must be followed by some sort of noun/pronoun/noun clause.

A relative clause MUST follow the noun that the clause is modifying. (RELATIVE CLAUSE only not relative pronoun)
A clause that is not following a noun cannot be a relative clause.
A relative clause usually follows the patters : a clause within a clause right after a noun. Being a clause, it has to have a verb in it and convey one coherent meaning. IT HAS TO CONVEY ONE COHERENT MEANING, if it conveys an incomplete idea, the relative clause hasn’t ended yet. If a new idea is expressed, then it belongs to a different clause.

When three or more items appear IN A SERIES (both grammatically AND LOGICALLY), a comma and a coordinating conjunction must appear before the last item in the series. It’s called the oxford comma.

Surprisingly, many couples who have been married for decades say that the key to a lasting union is not open communication, unfailing honesty, or similar religious or political views but simply not to get divorced.
Here, the items in the list logically are open communication, unfailing honesty and similar religious/political views hence only these three need oxford comma plus coordinating conjunction (‘or’), the but that comes before ‘simply…’ is a different construct hence doesn’t need to comply with these rules.

Question 14

Noun

Noun are naming words. These can be names for people, animals, places, objects, substances, qualities, emotions, actions, things, abstract ideas, feelings, experiences etc.
Weird noun example : 2005
Common noun is used for a class of person, place, thing : car, man, city
Proper noun is name of particular or specific person, place or thing. Proper noun always starts with capital letter.
Countable noun : Noun with both singular and plural form for anything/anyone you can count.
Non-countable noun : Does not have plural and something we cannot/would not count. Always takes singular form.
Some nouns can be both countable and uncountable hair, room, light.

Collective noun : Noun naming a group of things, animals etc. You can count the individual members of the group but you usually think of the group as one unit.
“Majority” is a collective noun, and collective nouns can be either singular or plural, depending on whether you’re talking about a group of individuals or the individuals in the group.
In the sentence: “A majority of workers have access to some paid sick days but a substantial minority of them do not,” “majority” has been disbanded as a single unit and the situation of several workers within that unit is being spoken about. Hence, the subject (a majority of workers) takes a plural verb (have access).
As singular : The majority supports the new legislation.
Children is NOT a collective noun.
MUCH and related phrases such as ‘as much as’ can be used only for uncountable nouns
MANY and related can only be used for countable nouns.
Possessive noun : boy’s , boys’
Noun as an adjective (non gerund) : first noun acts as an adjective : race horse, war story, tennis ball, kitchen floor. Several nouns as adjectives one after the other : Argentina football team coach

To check if noun, try adding ‘a’ , ‘an’, or ‘the’ in front of the suspected noun. If it is still grammatical, you have a noun. You can also substitute it with another noun to check (the cheese test).

Answer 14

Pronoun

Word that replaces noun or another pronoun.
Relative pronoun : Relates to the word that it modifies and links one phrase/clause to another phrase/clause.
Personal pronoun : Refers to a specific person or thing
Indefinite pronoun (conveys the idea of any, all, none or some) : refers to an identifiable but not specified person or thing. Eg : Anybody, each, either , none, someone
Demonstrative pronoun : Points to and identifies. Eg : this, that, these, such, none, neither
Interrogative pronoun: Used to ask questions

Subjective case : doer of verbs. Eg : he, she, they, who
Objective case : receiver of verbs/ Eg : him, her, me, whom, them.
Possessive case : my, mine, her, his, theirs.
Note : who is subjective case, whom is objective case. Eg : He is the person who loves me. He is the person whom I love.

Pronouns require objective case in prepositional phrase.

Adjective

An adjective modifies a noun or a pronoun by describing, identifying or quantifying words.

Weird Adjective Eg : 75 (as in 75 course meal etc.), third, your.

Proper adjectives are formed from proper nouns : Japanese, Keynesian, United Nations (as in United Nations representative)
Comparative & superlative adjectives
We use comparative adjectives when talking about or comparing 2 things (NOT 3 or more things).
A superlative adjective expresses the extreme/highest degree of a quality. We can use superlative adjectives when talking about 3 or more things (NOT 2 things).
Usually, we get comparative by adding ‘-er’ and superlative by adding ‘-est’.

Important : Comparative and Superlatives apply ONLY TO ADJECTIVES and NOT TO ADVERBS.
So, ‘good’ is adjective and ‘well’ is adverb.

Verb

Tells us what a subject does or is. They tell us the action, event or the state.

Transitive verb : needs an object to complete its meaning and to receive the action expressed.
Eg : Kicked
Intransitive verb : complete in itself or which is does not require an object.
Eg : Talked
Active voice : Who does what. Object receives the action of the verb performed by the subject.
Passive voice : What was done by whom. Subject receives the action of the verb being performed by the object.

Question 15

Adverb

Modifies verb, adjective or another adverb. Answers questions such as “how”, “why” “when”, “where”, “how much”.
USUALLY has a ‘-ly’ suffix.
Adverbs can modify clauses and sentences as well.
Clause :
1) Perhaps you are correct, but not at first glance.
‘Perhaps’ modifies the clause ‘you are correct’
2) Surely he will be on time, but I hope not.
‘Surely’ modifies ‘he will be on time’
Sentence :
1) Suddenly, she went home.
2) Today, we can have a vacation.

Preposition

Preposition links nouns, pronouns and phrases to other words in a sentence. The word or phrase that a preposition introduces is called the object of the preposition.
A preposition usually indicates the TEMPORAL, SPATIAL or LOGICAL relationship of it’s objects with the rest of the sentence.
Prepositional phrase is made up of the preposition, its object and any associated adjectives or adverbs. It can function as a noun, an adjective or an adverb.
A preposition is ALWAYS followed by a noun and NEVER by a verb. (Eg : of good friends, for the final exam (can have a noun modifier before noun/pronoun but not verb))
A prepositional phrase can be removed and the remaining sentence will still make sense.

Some prepositions to REMEMBER : of, to, for, from, about, as

At the minimum, a prepositional phrase will begin with a preposition and end with a noun, pronoun, gerund, or clause, the “object” of the preposition. The object of the preposition will often have one or more modifiers to describe it. These are the patterns for a prepositional phrase:
preposition + noun, pronoun, gerund, or noun clause
preposition + modifier(s) + noun, pronoun, gerund, or noun clause
prepositional phrases act as adjectives or adverbs

A quick check for a propositional phrase is that it shouldn’t contain any verbs.

Answer 15

Conjunction

Used to link words, phrases ,and clauses. Types : coordinating and subordinating

Subject: Person or thing which carries out the verb
Object : Person or thing upon whom or which the action of the verb is carried out
Predicate : tells about what a person or a thing does or did.

Verbals : Gerunds, Participles and Infinitives
Gerund : End with -ing and function as a noun.
Participles : Act as adjectives. Past participles usually end with -ed, -en, -d, -t, -n. Present participles usually end with -ing.
Present participles usually describe what a thing does
Past participles usually describe what was done to a thing. Usually end with -ed or -en
The noun associated with a participle can be either 1) the agent doing the action of the participle or 2) the receiver of the effect of the participle.

Infinitive : ‘to’ + verb. Functions as noun, adjective or adverb. Can also function as a subject, direct object, etc.

Diff between infinitives and prepositional phrase :
Infinitives : to + verb. Eg : to fly, to draw
prepositional phrases : to + noun/pronoun. Eg : to him, TO THE COMMITTEE, TO THIS ADDRESS etc.

Neither prepositional phrases nor infinitives can act as the main verb.

Question 16

‘this’ and ‘these’ refer to things that are nearby in space or time.
‘that’ and ‘those’ refer to things that are farther away in space or time.

As a relative pronoun, ‘that’ can refer to both singular and plural nouns. As a demonstrative, ‘that’ can refer only to singular nouns. For plural, use ‘THOSE’
As a demonstrative pronoun, ‘that’ can refer to both living and non living things. As a relative pronoun, ‘that’ can only refer to non-living things.
How to check if demonstrative or relative :
1) For relative, the noun being pointed to should be present as is.
2) For demonstrative, it just stands for a person, place, thing that must be pointed to. Need not be present previously in the sentence.
3) (if 1 and 2 do not work) between the two, if you can drop it [+maybe the verb that immediately follows it] and the sentence still makes sense, it’s acting as a relative pronoun.

Answer 16

Relative Clauses :
who/whom | which/that | where | when | whose
Person | Yes | X | X | X | Yes
Place | X | Yes | Yes | X | Yes
Thing | X | Yes | X | X | Yes
Idea | X | Yes | X | X | Yes
Time | X | X | X | Yes | X

NOTE : ‘where’ cannot be used for a ‘metaphorical’ place such as condition, situation, case, circumstance or arrangement. In such conditions, use ‘in which’ instead. Where is used only for actual physical places.

Eg :

1) We had an arrangement WHERE he cooked and I cleaned
2) We had an arrangement IN WHICH he cooked and I cleaned

2) is correct 1) is NOT

‘in which’ can also be used in place of ‘when’

Question 17

that vs which (as relative pronouns)
1) That is essential, which is non-essential.
‘who’ is both essential and non essential, use commas to figure out
2) which modifies nearest grammatically eligible word, that modifies the nearest word OR PHRASE which makes both grammatical and logical sense
3) when the intent is to modify a list (2 or more), that is preferred

Answer 17

‘make’ and ‘dove’ are plural verbs. ‘many’ takes plural.
‘both…and’ is correct. ‘both..as well as…’ and ‘both….along with’ are NOT CORRECT due to redundancy.

‘atleast…or more’ is redundant
‘though….yet’ is also redundant

Question 18

Remove prepositional phrases when checking for SV agreement.

Remove appositives when checking for SV agreement.
Appositives : An element of a sentence that modifies or further describes another element by renaming it.
Eg : My brother John. John is an appositive.
The uninvited guest, a large spider, was prattling about. A large spider is an appositive.
Inflation, the increase over time of goods and services, is a silent killer. ‘the increase..services’ is an appositive.
Aadith, the majestic gmat topper, is sleeping. ‘the..topper’ is an appositive.

If, when we replace a noun in a sentence with its modifier, the sentence retains its core meaning, the noun modifier is an appositive.

Abstract appositives rather than renaming and modifying specific words or phrases, rename and modify entire ideas presented in clauses.
Abstract appositives are sometimes used in place of relative clauses to make the sentences more effective since GMAT doesn’t prefer relative pronouns referring to entire clauses.
Eg :
After the judge announced her decision, {the governor spent much of the rest of the day ranting on social media}, [a spectacle that shocked not only his supporters but also his detractors]
[ ] demarcates the abstract appositive
{} is the clause which is modified.

Remove all relative clauses when checking for SV agreement

Answer 18

When two noun are joined by coordinating conjunction ‘and’, they demand plural verb unless the two nouns together name a single entity such as ‘bed and breakfast’ (the bed and breakfast was closed), ‘rice and beans’ (while rice and beans is a popular dish in my country) etc. in which case they demand singular verb. USE CONTEXT or the word which follows the verb in these cases to make out. dish is one thing hence rice and beans is also one thing/dish.
Eg : Strawberries and cream is a high calorie snack. Here, since we’re using singular ‘snack’, the context says that we’re talking about something singular.

Remove all additive phrases when checking for SV agreement.
Additive phrases which are phrases that begin with structures such as ‘along with’, ‘as well as’, ‘in addition to’, ‘accompanied by’, ‘together with’ do not create plural subjects.
They can be both before an after the subject.
Eg :
Ringo, [as well as other members or the band], HAS requested cocaine.
[Together with her coworkers], Lily has been planning to do cocaine.

An abstract appositive names what was stated in the preceding clause, adding information in the process.
Eg :I went to the restaurant with Alexa, an outing that was far more fun than staying at work.
The underlined part names what was stated in the preceding clause.

An absolute phrase does not name what was stated by preceding clause. It adds entirely new information.
Eg : The boxer bled profusely, his eyes swollen by successive blows from the opponent.
The underlined portion adds entirely new information about the scenario.

Question 19

The verb in a clause or sentence containing a compound subject joined by the conjunctions ‘or’, ‘nor’, ‘either….or’ or ‘neither…nor’ must agree with the SUBJECT noun to which it is closest.
Note that SUBJECT NOUN need not be the same as the CLOSEST NOUN.
Eg : Either the manager in charge of the project or the members of the team [have] to claim responsibility for this oversight.
Here the closes noun to ‘have’ is team which is singular however the SUBJECT noun is the members (remove prepositional phrase ‘of the team’) which is plural.

Answer 19

In an inverted sentence, the main verb precedes the subject. Even for such sentences, using the strategy of identifying the main verb and using that to determine who or what is performing the action works. You can also try re-inverting the inverted sentence and see if that helps.

Collective nouns may be both singular and plural. When the members of the group in question act individually, we use plural. If the group is acting as one unit, then use singular. The usage depends on the context. Find the action and check if the action is done on individual level or can de done as a single group entity. If former, plural else, singular.
This type of errors are very tricky, you need to over index on the context to find the answer. If the action being talked about is an individual pursuit like awareness, receiving income, reading, listening then you need to split into individuals and thus use plural. [The above mentioned approach ‘using action’ works most of the time and is the one to prefer]
Another method you can use is checking if the sentence is meaningful after you split it to individuals, sometimes, the application of verb in these cases makes it weird. Eg The group is getting smaller. If you split to individuals, it will mean that the members of the group are getting smaller which doesn’t make sense.

Eg : The majority of the team fits/fit into one bus. Here, the action is fitting into a bus which is a group thing and not really an individual level thing (the sentence wants to talk about the majority of the team fitting, not an individual fitting)

Question 20

‘police’ when used as a noun is always plural.

When a subject begins with ‘every’, ‘each’, ‘many a’, ‘many an’, the subject takes a singular verb irrespective of whether the subject is singular or plural .Eg : each of us, each of the votes

Answer 20

When relative pronoun refers to a singular noun, it takes a singular verb. and if it refers to a plural noun, it takes plural verb. The verb goes with the noun to which the pronoun refers to.

Try using synonyms in case you’re stuck. Eg : replace ‘various’ by ‘multiple’ to see that it is plural

Question 21

Even journalists covering the conflict who have years of experience covering war torn regions [and] find the brutality of the violence that they encounter on a daily basis difficult to rationalize.
Here, if you add the ‘and’, you observe that it becomes one long relative clause starting from ‘who have…’ which modifies the journalists.
But, if you drop the ‘and’, you can stop the relative clause before ‘find the brutality’ and use ‘find’ as the main verb of the sentence which is not possible if you add ‘and’ since you cannot stop the relative clause before ‘find the brutality’ since it will have a hanging ‘and’.
Similar Example : The QE2, which operated as a cruise ship out of Goa, for nearly forty years, remaining among the most well-known ocean liners, [and] has taken on a second life as a floating hotel in Dubai.
Adding ‘and’ makes the whole thing after ‘which operated..’ into one long relative clause. Dropping it makes ‘has’ the main verb.

Answer 21

All pronouns except SANAMM which convey the idea of any, all, none or some are singular.
NOTE that while any and some belong to SANAMM, anyone and somebody DO NOT.
Eg : anybody, anyone, anything, another, each, either, every, everybody, everyone, everything, neither, nobody, no one, nothing, one, somebody, someone, something, whatever, whoever* always take singular verbs.
* : Neither when paired with nor uses different rules that we have already discussed. Already for Either or
When ‘whoever’ precedes a plural noun, the plural noun may be the subject of the sentence and take a plural verb.
Eg : Whoever the owners ARE, they are doing nothing at all.
Otherwise when used on a standalone basis, it is singular :
Whoever WINS the election will inherit quite a mess.

Question 22

What are the SANAMM pronouns and what’s special about them?

Answer 22

The SANAMM indefinite pronouns : ‘some’, ‘any’, ‘none’, ‘all’, ‘more’, ‘most’. Or AANSMM : any, all, none, some, more, most. These pronouns can be singular or plural depending on their referents.
For these pronouns, you can’t remove the prepositional phrase because that is what we use to determine whether we need a singular verb or a plural verb. Also, we use only the prepositional phrase which contains the noun to which the indefinite pronoun refers to. Other prepositional phrases can be ignored.

Question 23

Subjects that begin with ‘the number of’ take singular verbs. Subjects that begin with ‘a number of’ take plural verbs.
‘the percentage/proportion’ : singular
‘a percentage/proportion’ : depends on the ‘what’ which answers ‘the percentage/proportion of what’

Answer 23

The number of convicted felons who [return] to prison after completing their sentences, whether re-incarcerated only months after being released or several years later, [has] not declined in decades despite increasingly harsh sentencing practices and the implementation of mandatory minimums.
IMPORTANT : the verb ‘return’ corresponds to the pronoun ‘who’ which corresponds to the noun convicted felons which is plural hence we use plural. The verb has corresponds to the ‘the number of convicted felons’ which is as we know, singular.

Question 24

There is a nuance to the usage of ‘a number/the number’ and ‘a percentage/the percentage’ : Using ‘the’ means that you are focused on the raw percentage/number and not the noun of the prepositional phrase that follows (percentage/number of what is not something we’re concerned with). In case you use ‘a’, you care about the object of the percentage/number (the ‘what’ for percentage/number of what). Hence, the usage of verb differs accordingly. In the former case, you can remove the prepositional phrase as usual and proceed. Not so much in the latter.

Answer 24

If a subject is a portion described using the word ‘percent’, whether the subject is singular or plural depends on whether what the portion is a portion of is singular or plural.
The same principle as above applies if we have a fraction eg : two thirds of x depends on x.

If you think about it, SANAMM also comes under this category. Other inclusions include majority, remainder, part etc.

Question 25

Is this sentence grammatically correct? : With close to 80 percent of the survey respondents who indicate that they take calls while driving, only about half of the respondents believe that doing so does not negatively impact their driving performance.

Answer 25

Yes, the first part 'with....while driving' is a prepositional PHRASE hence it need not have a subject/main verb/both. It does not have main verb here.

Question 26

``` Singular | Plural Alumnus | Alumni Criterion | Criteria Datum* | Data* Fungus | Fungi Medium* | Media* Phenomenon | Phenomena Nucleus | Nuclei Syllabus | Syllabi ``` Plural indefinite pronouns always take plural verbs. Eg : MANY, BOTH, FEW and SEVERAL (MANY A and MANY AN still take singular)

Answer 26

Datum/Data : Currently, data can be used for both singular and plural meaning. Medium/media : When media refers to the press, it is often singular. A medium who is a person who talks to spirits is singular and plural is mediums. The size medium also is singular and plural is mediums : The jerseys are all mediums. Fields of study such as mathematics, linguistics, politics, ethics, statistics are all singular. However, some of them can be used to refer to a set of something, in those case, they are plural. Eg : His politics GET in the way of his relationships. (Denotes a set) There AREN'T any statistics to bolster the claim (denotes a set) The ethics of eating meat ARE a major concern (Denotes a set) The economics of car ownership MAKE it tough to own one (denotes a set)

Question 27

When subjects are infinitives, gerunds, noun phrases and clauses, they all take singular verbs. Note that the clauses can have SV within themselves but when the clause as a whole is considered a subject, the verb has to be singular. Eg : [That the Gentle Barn actors have gained the respect of animal lovers across the United states] WAS no surprise. The noun clause within [] has SV agreement between Gentle Barn actors and have. The noun clause as a whole when used as a subject is singular hence takes WAS.

Answer 27

One of the noun[always plural] + that/who + PLURAL verb . since the verb refers to the pronoun that/who. 'that/who + verb' makes a relative clause that restrictively modifies the noun hence the whole thing becomes a noun phrase. So, since the noun is plural, the modifier also takes plural to modify the plural noun. One of the noun[always plural] + SINGULAR verb . since the verb refers to one of ... which follows the usual rule of always singular. Sentences in the future tense always take the plural form.

Question 28

Check for SV agreement : 1) Between main verb and subject 2) Between any verb and subjects that appear within relative clauses

Answer 28

'on account of' essentially means 'because of' or 'as a consequence of'

Question 29

Is this sentence correct? If not, what's wrong? Only a small percentage of people whose homes are in a flood zone choose that they purchase flood insurance on their homes.

Answer 29

The phrasing 'choose that they purchase' is not logical. 'that they purchase flood insurance' expresses an idea or fact as in 'I believe that they purchase flood insurance'. The people would not choose an idea or fact. It should be 'choose to purchase'

Question 30

``` Is this sentence correct? If not, what's wrong? The class of kindergartners regularly donates for nearby soup kitchens. ```

Answer 30

This incorrectly means that the class is donating to someplace else on behalf of nearby soup kitchens. It should ideally be donates TO nearby kitchens, not FOR them.

Question 31

Is this sentence correct? If not, what's wrong? 1) The city of Aspen, has proposed recently to increase the lodging tax, so longtime visitors are against the proposal. 2) The city of Aspen, is proposing that the tax for lodging recently increase. 3) The city of Aspen, proposed a recent increase in tax when lodging. 4) The city of Aspen has proposed recent increases for the tax when lodging.

Answer 31

All are wrong. 1) 'so longtime visitors are against the proposal' indicates that longtime visitors are against the proposal BECAUSE the city of Aspen recently proposed it. 2) 'recently increase' does not make sense since 'recently' indicates that something that has happened in the recent past but 'increase' is a present tense verb. 'tax for lodging' conveys unclear meaning, it the tax for the benefit of lodging? for the purpose of lodging? You propose a tax ON something. 3) 'propose a recent increase' does not make sense since 'recent' indicates that the increase already happened in the recent past but 'propose' is a present tense verb 'tax' when lodging conveys an unclear meaning that when the city is lodging, it proposes an increase in the taxes. 4) 'has proposed recent increases' does not make sense since 'recent' indicates that the increase has already happened while 'has proposed' indicates that the increases haven't happened yet. 'for the tax when lodging' is unclear. Are the increases for the benefit of tax? Could it be that, when the city is lodging, it has proposed increases? etc.

Question 32

Is this sentence correct? If not, what's wrong? 1) Whether one is familiar with the intense preparation and anxiety of taking and performing well on standardized exams largely depends on luck. 2) Intense preparation and anxiety with taking and performing well on standardized exams. 3) Intense preparation and anxiety from taking and performing well on standardized exams.

Answer 32

'the intense preparation and anxiety OF taking and performing well on standardized exams' does not convey clear meaning. Are 'intense preparation and anxiety' qualities that 'taking and performing well on standardized exams' possess? To elaborate : 'the intense preparation of taking standardized examination' doesn't make sense. 2) Incorrectly conveys that 'preparation and anxiety' are simply 'with' the exams. To elaborate, do what we did in 1) : 'the intense preparation with taking standardized exams' doesn't make sense 3) Incorrect meaning. Do what we did for 1) and 2). Is there 'Intense preparation from performing well on standardized exams' or ' anxiety from performing well'

Question 33

Is this sentence correct? If not, what's wrong? | I don't know the way by which gravity functions.

Answer 33

This structure makes it seem as if gravity 'the way' as a means to function. It should be 'the way in which' or 'way that gravity functions'

Question 34

Is this sentence correct? If not, what's wrong? 1) Although the new mayor believes that building an airport within the town limits is a sound idea, the townspeople worry about the airport's increased noise and heavy pollution. 2) The mayor believes that building an airport within the town limits will be a good idea.

Answer 34

Both are wrong. 1) 'the townspeople worry about airport's increased noise and heavy pollution' seems to indicate that the airport already exists which is not true from context. 2) This sentence implies that the mayor does not currently believe that building an airport is a good idea but does believe that, someday, building an airport will be a good idea.

Question 35

Is this sentence correct? If not, what's wrong? 1) While I found that up to 10% of fish caught by men using a fly and lure method and then released back into the water survive and that catch and release of fish was associated with a low survival rate. 2) While I found that up to 10% of fish caught by men using a fly and lure method and then released back into the water survive and also found that catch and release of fish was associated with a low survival rate.

Answer 35

1) No independent clause, the whole thing is just one dependent clause. 2) No independent clause, the whole thing is just one dependent clause.

Question 36

Is this sentence correct? If not, what's wrong? | The effects of aerosols and clouds on each other, knowledge that is helpful to NASA has to be bought from me.

Answer 36

The 'effects' cannot BE knowledge. NASA may have knowledge OF the effects but the effects themselves are not knowledge.

Question 37

Both 'like' and 'as' are used to present comparison. While presenting comparison, 'like' must be followed by a noun entity. While presenting comparison, 'as' must be followed by a clause or an SV pair. 'As' can also be used to present function ('like' cannot be used for this purpose) : John has joined the organization as a researcher. When 'as' is used to present function, it should follow 'as' + 'noun' structure Note : it is very important to understand if the intention to present comparison or function before applying the above concepts 'such as' is also used to present examples of something.

Answer 37

Many species of the green lacewing are colloquially known as 'stinkflies', which refer to the unpleasant odor emitted by the insect. The above statement has an SV agreement error because 'which' refers to 'stinkflies' which is a proper noun hence singular. Hence, it does not agree with the plural 'refer'. -> THIS IS INCORRECT, PROPER NOUNS CAN BE PLURAL AS WELL. BUT THE CONCEPT BEING DESCRIBED BELOW IS CORRECT. Similar but slightly different concept : The failure of the predominant industry is often the reason a populated area becomes a 'ghost town', which is used to refer to a town, city, or other municipality deserted by their population... The above statement differs from the 'stinkflies' example since in this, the proper noun is has 'WHICH IS USED'. A proper name cannot be used to refer to something. The term 'ghost town' can be used. We can't say 'ghost town is used to refer to a town' The right way would have been 'becomes a 'ghost town' which refers to a town...'

Question 38

Is this sentence correct? If not, what's wrong? The survival of woodpeckers depends on the presence of certain items on which woodpeckers feed, such as nuts, berries and seeds, and, in forests, many can be found on five continents.

Answer 38

Apart from the referent/antecedent of 'many' being unclear, the meaning of the statement states that 'in forests' many can be found on five continents as if the five continents are found in forests. To see this more clearly, move ‘in forests’ to the end of the sentence. This notion is nonsensical. VERY KEY POINT : It is obvious that the prep phrase 'in forests' is acting adverbially. Hence, it modifies/adds info to the entire clause. Hence, it arches over and states that the 5 continents are in forests.

Question 39

The antecedent of a pronoun can be the sentence subject, objects or part of the prepositional phrase.

Answer 39

Before we decide that a pronoun lacks a clear antecedent, we must take care to holistically evaluate the sentence, checking to determine whether the logic and meaning of the sentence make clear to which noun the pronoun refers to

Question 40

Is this sentence correct? If not, what's wrong? The mayor wants the contractors installing the new bike paths to finish before the start of the festival, but there is no practical way for them to do this.

Answer 40

'this' has no clear referent. Using 'so' in it's place would be better.

Question 41

An adjective can't be the antecedent of a pronoun. Examples where the adjective is being used as an antecedent. These are wrong : 1) Jason was nervous about the chemistry exam because it was not his best subject. Here, 'chemistry' modifies exam and is an adjective. Hence, it cannot be the antecedent 2) I wish the bread section were at the front of the store, so that I could purchase it more conveniently. The below one, however, is correct : 1) While doing farm work, David, found the fossilized bones of a dinosaur, and he could tell it had been a big one. Here, even though 'of a dinosaur' is a prepositional phrase and acts like an adjective as a whole, it has a noun 'dinosaur' in it which can be and is the antecedent here for 'it' 2) The train that derailed was made up mostly of cars carrying coal, and tons of it was spilled all over the area near the tracks. Here, even though 'carrying coal' is a participle phrase which acts as an adjective as a whole, it still has the noun 'coal' which is a noun and is the antecedent for 'it'

Answer 41

One important exception to the previous rule is that nouns in the possessive form which act as adjectives can be the antecedents of a pronoun. Eg : The boss's dog is running fast, and his cat is taking a nap. A pronoun must agree in number with its antecedent. A singular pronoun must refer to a singular antecedent, and a plural pronoun must refer to a plural antecedent. Pronouns that correctly refer to 'each' or 'every' are always singular, regardless of whether 'each' or 'every' begins a phrase that contains a plural noun or that describes a group.

Question 42

Incorrect statement : Everyone has their own problems. | Reason : Since everyone is always singular, their which requires a plural antecedent is incorrectly paired

Answer 42

If a sentence contains a noun and a pronoun that play the SAME ROLE or two pronouns that play the SAME ROLE, then the sentence contains a useless word and, thus, is illogically constructed. Eg : 1) Tennis champion Boris, who thrilled fans with his flamboyant playing, he struggled after his early success and was declared bankrupt in 2017. 'he' is redundant since it plays the SAME ROLE as Boris which is the subject of the sentence. 2) Even after people brought the Wright brothers' feats to the attention of the Daily News, one of the newspapers serving Ohio, it still did not cover the story. The above statement is correct since 'it' plays the role of the subject and refers to Daily News which was NOT the subject of the previous clause.

Question 43

When the word 'term'/'label'/'moniker'/'name' introduces a noun, we should be on the lookout for pronoun-antecedent errors. Eg : 1) The label 'socialism' has long been avoided by many, but recent news stories have made it a more mainstream ideology. Here the 'it' incorrectly refers to 'the label'. We fix it by replacing 'it' with the noun it should ideally refer to i.e. socialism. 2) People often say the brand name Coke when they order it in a restaurant, but what they actually are asking for is any cola. Here 'it' incorrectly refers to the 'brand name Coke'. We fix it by replacing 'it' with the noun 'cola' CORNER CASES: 1) The brand name Kleenex has become so synonymous with facial tissues that many people use it to refer to tissues in general. The above statement is correct. Here 'it' refers to the brand name which is what we want. 2) According to EPA, the designation 'brownfield', which signifies land that has been polluted by development and is currently not in use, applies to more than 400 sites countrywide, and the reclamation of it provides a lot of benefits. Here, 'it' can refer to land but that would distort meaning since we don't want to say that reclamation of 'land' will provide a lot of benefits. We want to convey that reclamation of BROWNFIELD land has a lot of benefit. However, 'it', in the current setting would refer to 'the designation' which is wrong. We fix it by replacing it by the noun brownfields.

Answer 43

When two facts are connected by 'since', the meaning expressed is that the first fact is an effect or results of the existence of the second fact. Versions in which pronouns refer to entire clauses are not correct. Eg : 1) My dog remained lost for days, which caused me to lose sleep until it was found. The above is incorrect. The correct version is : My dog remained lost for days, causing me to lose sleep until it was found. 2) The job was less difficult than Shane had expected it to be, but that didn't make up for the lack of pay The correct version replaces the pronoun with a noun as in 1) or with a noun phrase like below : The job was less difficult than Shane had expected it to be, but the lack of difficulty didn't make up for the lack of pay. IMPORTANT : However, if all the other options are eliminated due to clear reasons and the option that is left has a pronoun referring to a clause, select it as correct.

Question 44

If a clause begins with 'because', following it up with 'it/this means that' is redundant.

Answer 44

'they/them/theirs' : 'subject/object/possessive' If a pronoun is doing the action, subject pronoun must be used. If the pronoun is being acted upon or is the object of a preposition, an object pronoun must be used. If the pronoun is indicating ownership, a possessive pronoun must be used. If the answer to the who/whom is I, he, she etc, use who (subject case). If it is me, him, her etc. then use whom (object case).

Question 45

In the case of compound subjects and objects, we still need to use object pronouns with object and subject pronouns with subject. Eg : Jack and I went snorkeling in Maui. Would you like to eat dinner with Sara and me? If neither he nor the director attends the event, we'll use stock photographs of him and the other cast members. One strategy that helps a lot is : When we have a pronoun as part of a compound subject/object, we can drop the part of the compound subject/object that is not the pronoun and then determine how the sentence would need to read with just the pronoun present. Eg : The investigators assured the CEO that the team being sent would include the director and (they/them). Here, to use the aforementioned strategy, drop 'the director and' to get : The investigators assured the CEO that the team being sent would include they/them. Now you know that 'them' is better suited.

Answer 45

Whenever the same pronoun serves as both the subject and object for different phrases/clauses, use the SUBJECT case. Eg : 1) When they walked into the bank to rob it, they hadn't considered (who/whom) might be inside. Here, who/whom is the object of the consideration but it also the subject of 'being inside', hence we use SUBJECT case and go with 'who'. 2) The industry was growing so fast, and available workers were so scarce that companies were hiring (whoever/whomever) seemed reasonably competent and was willing to give the work a shot. Again, we have a clash here. Hence, we go with the subject case and choose 'whoever'

Question 46

Is this sentence correct? If not, what's wrong? The analyst had discovered the data breach, but he was not sure by who the system had been hacked into or why they had done so.

Answer 46

Incorrect 'by' is a preposition. So, the object of the preposition should always be in the objective case. So, 'whom' should be used. IT JUST NEEDS TO BE THE OBJECT OF A PREPOSITION, THERE NEED NOT BE A FULL PREPOSITIONAL PHRASE

Question 47

Is this sentence correct? If not, what's wrong? While Aaron had aspired to play the game of football professionally, he quit it upon discovering how much practice was required for learning how to kick it well enough.

Answer 47

This one is a doozy. So, the first it should ideally refer to 'the game of football', if not, the sentence becomes wrong right there. If it does, the second 'it' doesn't have a logical antecedent since the football present in the sentence actually refers to the 'game of football' and not an actual football. Here, the football is naming the game and not the object.

Question 48

In some cases, we find a possessive pronoun + gerund structure in which you need to ascertain if the sentence means to point to the gerund and use the pronoun to indicate association or if the sentence means to point to the pronoun. Eg : 1) During the meeting with the citizens, the mayor seemed to be surprised by their questioning the validity of the data. Here, the mayor was surprised by the questioning of the citizens. Hence, we use possessive pronoun since it's not the subject/object (in which case you would use they/them) 2) Elisa looked around for her father and eventually found him swimming in the pond. Here, Elisa found her father, not his swimming. Hence, we use object case and choose him. NOTE : The possessive pronoun has the entity whose possession is being talked about as the ANTECEDENT.

Answer 48

A demonstrative pronoun is a pronoun that points out or demonstrates the noun in the sentence. A demonstrative pronoun takes the place of a noun and always stands alone. Eg : this, that, these, those. Difference between personal and demonstrative pronouns : Personal pronouns directly and entirely refers o the antecedent it replaces. Eg : Once the restored plane reached 100 knots, it gracefully lifted off the runway. The personal pronoun 'it' refers to the 'restored plane' Demonstrative pronouns do not refer directly to the antecedent, they ARE SOMETIMES USED to create comparison to something. They are usually used to point something out. Eg : The speed of today's cars well exceeds that of cars in the 1950s. The demonstrative pronoun replaces 'speed' but not the 'speed of today's cars'. It is used to compare it to THE SPEED of the cars of 1950s. Non-comparison form : Few people have sought to reach the summit of Everest, and of those who have reached it, only a small percentage have sought to do so a second time. 'those' which is a demonstrative pronoun is being used to point out a certain group of people. The people who have reached the summit. IMPORTANT : Key Point : Since they 'point to and identify', they act like/become a subject themselves which is then used in the structure that follows. Thus they become a DIFFERENT INDEPENDENT subject/topic than what might have been discussed earlier in the sentence.

Question 49

There is also something called demonstrative adjective. Demonstrative adjectives are always immediately followed by a noun which they modify. THIS is used to differentiate them for demonstrative pronouns. They are used to point out and identify the nouns. Eg : this, that, these and those This bakery is good. To highlight the difference between the two : Demonstrative adjective: 1) This bakery has a better selection of breads, but that bakery has more exotic pastries. 'this' and 'that' are just being used to point and identify. Demonstrative pronoun : 1) The pastries at the bakery on the corner are more exotic than those at the bakery across the street. Here, the 'those' is setting up comparison with pastries from across the street.

Answer 49

Mixing up of demonstrative pronoun with personal pronoun causes the sentence to be incorrect (relative pronouns not being considered since they are always in relative clauses). Eg: While pandas may seem cuddly or endearing, these have exceedingly strong bites and large dexterous claws. 'these' which is demonstrative is wrong, use personal 'they'.

Question 50

To confirm that the pronoun 'it' without a referent is not being used correctly, we can check for the presence of a delayed subject. If there is a delayed subject that we can logically substitute for 'it', 'it' is an expletive. If there is no delayed subject that we can logically substitute for 'it', we can be confident that 'it' is not correctly used. (Note : 'there' is also used as an expletive but that does not follow the above rule, use logic to see if it is expletive or not. substitution of delayed subject etc. does not work with 'there') Eg : 1) For many people, it is challenging to make a change in career after spending decades in the same field. Here, a cursory glance reveals that 'it' does not have a logical referent. But if you see, the phrase 'to make a change in career after spending decades in the same field' is a delayed subject. To verify, pick it up AS IS and replace 'it' with it to get : 'For many people, to make a change in career after spending decades in the same field is challenging' which makes perfect sense. HENCE, we have a delayed subject and the above sentence is correct. 2) Because there are little footprints on the plates, it seems likely that the missing apples were taken by monkeys. Delayed subject : that the missing apples were taken by monkeys After replacement : Because there are little footprints on the plates, that the missing apples were taken by monkeys seems likely : Correct 3) (Little tricky) Long before it was prevalent for African Americans to enter politics, Alexander Twilight became the first African American to serve in the state legislature. Replace 'it' by 'for African Americans to enter politics' 4) (Very tricky) While that people can lose weight and become more fit by exercising is well known, [it] is less well known that [it] can be that, as a result of a person's over-exercising, the person gains weight. Both of the 'it' have delayed subjects. 1) that it can be that... 2) that, as a result... We can use 'that' this way since it's in the demonstrative/relative form. There are some exceptions to the above (ofc) but they are very common expressions which we know to be correct. Eg : 1) It is raining 2) It is two o'clock.

Answer 50

Use MEANING as well to understand if pronoun has a referent. Eg : Despite the board of governors supporting the measure, they kept voting against it. Here, you may think that 'they' can refer back to governors but it can't. Since, if the board composed of governors is supporting the measure, why will the governors keep voting against it? The above mentioned is wrong because the pronoun 'they' has no antecedent.

Question 51

'which' doesn't follow the usual 'non-essential/refers to the noun immediately before' logic when it is preceded by a preposition. Eg : in which, of which, from which etc. In all other cases, it should be preceded by a comma and refer to the noun immediately before it

Answer 51

Don't mix up 'one' and 'you/he/they etc.' when using them in statements. Eg : Incorrect : If one does not study, you should not be surprised when you do badly in the test. Correct : 1) If one does not study, one should not be surprised when one does badly in the test. 2) If one does not study, he or she should not be surprised at having done badly in the test.

Question 52

``` Although it is conceivable that man may someday be able to fly, there is no clear evidence at the moment [of his ability to do it]. A) of his ability to do it B) of his doing that C) to do so D) that he can do so E) of his ability to do that ```

Answer 52

'it' and 'that' if used will be ambiguous. To see that, replace 'it' by the closest possible antecedent 'fly' : Although...there is no clear evidence at the moment of his ability to do fly : wrong. In such cases, replace the pronouns with 'so'. Correct answer : D ALWAYS fit the antecedent in place of the pronoun to verify that it make sense.

Question 53

Is this sentence correct? If not, what's wrong? | Exposure to sunlight prevents the beans' outer layer from oxidizing and reducing its flavor.

Answer 53

Incorrect. The phrasing attributes both the actions 'oxidizing' and 'reducing' to 'the beans' outer layer'. It does not make sense that the beans' outer layer would be reducing its flavor which is nonsensical.

Question 54

Is this sentence correct? If not, what's wrong? By switching from consuming conventional produce to only consuming certified organic produce, one can drastically decrease the quantities of pesticides that enter the body.

Answer 54

Incorrect. The phrasing 'only consuming certified..' , it conveys the non-sensical meaning that the person would engage in only consumption of organic produce and do nothing else like maybe sleeping etc. Ideally, we should move 'only' to after 'consuming' NOTE : if you replaced 'one' with a pronoun like 'it' or 'this', it would make it non-sensical since 'by switching....' expresses how something can be accomplished which is not a thing/noun. Hence, it (prepositional phrase btw) cannot be represented by a pronoun such as 'this'.

Question 55

Is this sentence correct? If not, what's wrong? | Carbon primarily composes all living things.

Answer 55

Incorrect. This sentence seems to indicate that the primary roles of carbon is that it composes all living things while also having a secondary action.

Question 56

Is this sentence correct? If not, what's wrong? 1) The chairperson, along with the COO, who had worked diligently for months with members of the incoming team to finalize the sale of the company, was more than ready to turn over all aspects of its management to it. 2) The chairperson, along with the COO, who had worked diligently for months with members of the incoming team to finalize the sale of the company, was more than ready to turn over all aspects of their management to them.

Answer 56

Both are incorrect. IMPORTANT : In cases where you have the same pronoun repeated twice like 'it/its' in 1 and 'their/them' in 2, to convey a clear meaning, they should refer to the same noun. Else, ambiguity causes the sentence to be wrong. Hence, if 'it' refers to the chairperson, then so should 'its'. Use this rule to ascertain if the resulting statement is logical or not.

Question 57

DON'T GET HUNG UP ON THE POSITION OF THE PRONOUN. They can occur both before and after the referent. What we mean when we say there is no referent is that there is no LOGICAL referent. Further, the sentence will tell you what it is currently referring to, if that is not LOGICAL, then the sentence is wrong.

Answer 57

The colloquialism 'coywolf', which mirrors the hybridization of coyote and wolf, is not the preferred terminology of wildlife biologists, who know the hybrid as the 'eastern coyote' , though as [their] sightings of them in residential areas have become more frequent, laypeople have not adopted the accurate nomenclature. Here, their can refer to BOTH laypeople and biologists. Hence, the position doesn't matter.

Question 58

Is this sentence correct? If not, what's wrong? The ministers are in favor of the new regulations, which require that each of the jet engines produced in the company's Canadian factories must be re-inspected by US aviation propulsion engineers.

Answer 58

Incorrect. It is redundant to say 'the new regulations, which REQUIRE that'.. 'MUST BE re-inspected'. When we 'require' something, we are saying that it 'must be'. So, the above essentially says 'require that each of the jet engines is required to be re-inspected'

Question 59

1) Considered it one of the best > Considered it to be one of the best. The former is succinct and clear. I.e. Consider X Y > Consider X to be Y 2) Preferred > Preferred more than : Same reason as 1)

Answer 59

'those' is sometimes used to refer to a certain group of people without a specific antecedent for 'those'. Eg : Those who do not learn from history are bound to repeat it Makes sense since 'those' can act as a demonstrative pronoun to function this way.

Question 60

Is this sentence correct? If not, what's wrong? | The Ocean Club, has many beachside cabanas. Most travel experts consider it one of the best in the world.

Answer 60

Incorrect. Here 'it' can logically only refer to the club. However, a club is never mentioned. Only a specific club, the Ocean Club is mentioned. If 'it' refers to 'the Ocean Club', the sentence would say that the Ocean Club is one of the best in world without saying what the Ocean Club is one of the best of.

Question 61

Is this sentence correct? If not, what's wrong? | Even those not well versed in advanced mathematical concepts can learn to be a card counter.

Answer 61

Incorrect. Nonsensical meaning that multiple people can learn to be a SINGLE card counter. people can learn to be card counters, not a card counter. Another example of what's incorrect : People do not have to be a mathematician.

Question 62

Is this sentence correct? If not, what's wrong? | Those not well versed in math can learn to count cards. He or she does not have to be a genius to do so.

Answer 62

Incorrect. | The singular 'he or she' pronoun cannot refer back to plural 'those'

Question 63

Usage of with : 1) with + noun : acts as a modifier for the preceding subject. ALSO, the noun being used with 'with' must be a sub-component of the subject in some form. It basically cannot be equal to the subject. Eg : 1) Emily and Nora fell asleep, with Emily still having wet hair : Wrong, Emily is not a sub-component of Emily 2) The thirteen original British colonies in North America, with some formed as commercial ventures, while others as religious havens, each had a written charter Wrong : some refers to colonies. Colonies are not sub-components of colonies 3) Matt has a very full schedule this week, with every one of his available time slots occupied. --> this sentence works, because "with" actually applies to Matt and/or his schedule -- i.e., Matt is the person with those occupied time slots, and/or his schedule is actually the thing with those time slots. 4) James was injured badly in the accident, with three bones broken badly enough to require surgery. : Correct

Answer 63

Usage of with (cont.) : 2) “With” is used to give the result of the action in preceding clause. For Eg: i) The honeybee’s stinger is heavily barbed and stays where it is inserted, with the result that the act of stinging causes Here “with” is used to give the result of the action in preceding clause === The honeybee’s stinger is heavily barbed and stays where it is inserted. So we can see that “Comma + With” acts as an adverbial Modifier ii) Environmental groups have filed a mass of lawsuits against the government’s inaction, with the result that the Supreme Court plays a larger role in environmental protection than its equivalent does in any other big country - an odd way to set policy. Here also “comma + with” is used to give the result of preceding action

Question 64

When you say 'more than one X', X should always be singular. It is WRONG to say : 1) I have more than one dogs. 2) Jim has more than one dogs

Answer 64

Dating apps normalized finding romantic partners through digital communications among single men and women who previously [regarded/regarding] a demeaning or disreputable activity for themselves to be online dating. 1) Using 'regarding' is wrong since it is present tense but 'previously' indicates that it happened in the past. 2) Even after using 'regarded', the sentence is wrong since it conveys the nonsensical meaning that single men and women considered ANY demeaning or disreputable activity for themselves as 'online dating' For eg : Getting wasted in public is online dating.

Question 65

Is this sentence correct? If not, what's wrong? The salamander and the newt possess the most impressive regenerative capabilities among tetrapods; if their tail or limb is amputated, they can regenerate it in as little as one to three months.

Answer 65

Incorrect. The salamander and the newt do not have just a single tail or limb between them as is indicated by 'their tail or limb'. Plural 'tails or limbs' must be used.

Question 66

Is this sentence correct? If not, what's wrong? A North American X-15 completed two suborbital flights in the summer of 1963, after which it became the first reused spacecraft in the history of flight

Answer 66

Incorrect 'which' ideally requires something like 'completing two suborbital flights'. But we do not have that, what we have instead and what it can refer to is 'summer of 1963' which doesn't make sense since X15 won't become the first reused spacecraft after the summer of 1963. It would become that as soon as the second flight was completed.

Question 67

Is this sentence correct? If not, what's wrong? 1) The term 'McMansion' is generally used pejoratively, and houses described as it, are likely to have been constructed in a cheap manner. 2) The term 'McMansion' is generally used pejoratively, and when a house is described like that, it is likely to have been constructed in a cheap manner.

Answer 67

Both are incorrect 1) Multiple houses cannot be described as a singular 'McMansion'. It could have been 'McMansion[s]' 2) 'that' can only refer to the term McMansion. But a house cannot be described LIKE the term McMansion ALWAYS REPLACE ANTECEDENT TO CHECK

Question 68

Is this sentence correct? If not, what's wrong? A bond's valuation does not necessarily follow the trajectory of either stock prices or interest rates; at the same time as two of them are rising, it could fall.

Answer 68

Incorrect. | You can't compare a time (at the same time...) to an event (it could fall)

Question 69

Is this sentence correct? If not, what's wrong? 1) Traffic is capable of being made worse through the widening of existing roads. 2) When existing roads are widened or new ones are constructed, it can worsen traffic.

Answer 69

Incorrect. 1) Conveys illogical meaning that traffic itself has some sort of ability to actively be made worse. It is as nonsensical as saying 'traffic is skilled at being made worse' 2) 'when...' indicates a timestamp. A timestamp cannot make traffic worse.

Question 70

Is this sentence correct? If not, what's wrong? 1) The zoologist now believes that a recently located band of gorillas had probably been hiding deep in the forest to avoid their being shot by poachers. 2) The data that the auditor presented establish unequivocally that the CEO committed fraud; in fact, it is so damning that he agreed to resign and repay the money immediately.

Answer 70

Collective nouns come back to haunt xD 1) Correct. 'being shot' is an individual action. you can't shoot a band of gorillas. Hence, you need to use 'their' for the plural form. 2) Incorrect. YOUR ANTENNAES NEED TO DETECT WHEN A COLLECTIVE NOUN is present to use context to check if it plural or singular. Here, 'establish' indicates that data is plural. Hence, it has a mismatch with 'it' which is singular.

Question 71

Is this statement ambiguous? | All the people in the room gasped when Jacob and Hans revealed their evil plot.

Answer 71

Yes. MULTIPLE TAKEAWAYS: The antecedent can be more than 1 word. Here, the possible antecedents are 'all the people' AND 'Jacob and Hans'. Since, either is a fit, it is ambiguous. The only rule is that pronouns can't refer to entire clauses. Pronouns can be used in place of a noun or noun PHRASES.

Question 72

Compound nouns (noun as adjective + main noun : together acts are noun) contain more than one word where the first acts like an adjective : case study, post office, dog collar, nail-biter, attorney-at-law.

Answer 72

``` Countable | Uncountable Many | Much Few | Little Fewer | Less Fewest | Least Number | Amount Numerous | Great ``` Use context to check if countable or uncountable, NOT COMMON LOGIC. Structures like : less X or Y means that 'less' applies to BOTH X and Y, hence both need to be uncountable. Similar for 'less X and Y'. Unit nouns such as dollars or gallons etc. refer to underlying quantities such as money or volume which are uncountable hence we use uncountable modifiers with them. We have [less] than 20 dollars. if you convert them to items, we can count them We have fewer than 20 dollar bills. If you see something like 'soda' which is uncountable written as 'sodas' [PLURAL] then it is being talked about in a countable sense, maybe as servings. In that case, USE COUNTABLE MODIFIERS. otherwise, stick to the UNCOUNTABLE form

Question 73

``` Indefinite pronouns (which convey any, all, none, some ,more, most, few, both, many, several, each, every, neither, one, either, ANOTHER ) will NOT have an antecedent. Other pronouns that don't have antecedents : one, you, it. Interrogative pronouns also don't need antecedents. ```

Answer 73

Hyphens are sometimes used to clarify ambiguous meaning. Smelly cheese salesperson : can mean both a cheese salesperson who is smelly or a salesperson who sells smelly cheese To clarify, we use smelly-cheese salesperson to indicate that he sells smelly-cheese.

Question 74

absolute adjectives : cannot be intensified by adding 'more' in front or '-er'. Eg : dead (no more dead or dead-er), square, circular, essential, universal, immortal, unique, absolute. DON'T use 'more fatal', use 'more likely fatal' DON'T use 'more circular', use 'more nearly circular' Before using the above, make sure that you have an absolute adjective in the first place. I made a mistake of thinking 'adapted' is an absolute adjective but it's not. Since, it makes sense to say 'better adapted to...' and 'more adapted for'. Hence, 'more completely adapted' is correct.

Answer 74

TRICKY 'my' is not a pronoun, it is an adjective. So is 'our', 'her' 'their' and 'your'. Possessive pronouns are : mine, yours, his, hers, its, ours, theirs The pronoun should be able to stand on its own : The car is his, the car is theirs/ours/yours (and not their/our/your)

Question 75

-ing and -ed words need a helper verb to become a complete, compound verb. Helper verbs : is, was , has, does, will, should , can, be etc. Eg: are planning, will be leaving etc. Note : an adverb can separate the verbs within a compound verb. But it is still a verb. Eg: has [frequently] defaced. will [you] be taking. will have [never so much as] touched NOTE : Not all -ed/-ing words preceded by a possible helper verb are compound verbs. The -ing/-ed words can be adjectives as well. Either way it shouldn't be an issue if you cannot distinguish between helping and linking verb since you'll only use the helping/linking verb and not the -ing/-ed part for SV agreement.

Answer 75

An -ing word without a helper verb isn't a real verb. IF YOU WANT TO CHECK IF SOMETHING IS A CERTAIN TYPE OF SPEECH, REPLACE IT BY WHAT YOU SUSPECT IT TO BE. IF IT MAKES GRAMMATICAL SENSE, IT IS THAT. I don't want [to pay taxes]. Is it Adjective : I don't want happy. -> NO Is it Adverb : I don't want quickly -> NO Is it Noun : I don't want dogs -> YES

Question 76

If you have a word that is suspected to be an adverb but does not end with '-ly' that is modifying a verb and you want to check if it is correct, try asking 'would this word make more sense with -ly on the end?' If the answer is no, then the current form is an adverb form. Eg : The boxer hit the opponent [hard]. Replacing 'hard' by 'hardly' doesn't make sense. Hence, 'hard' is in an adverb form. NOTE : not all '-ly' words are adverbs. Eg : friendly, ugly. NOTE : The analyst ascertained that the job was ,indeed, too good to be true. Here, 'indeed' is the adverb for the verb 'was'. 'thereby' is also an adverb.

Answer 76

'I feel bad' vs 'I feel badly'. In the first case, 'bad' is an adjective and 'feel' links the subject 'I' to the adjective 'bad'. In the second case, 'badly' is an adverb which modifies 'feel' and says that you suck at the action of feeling.

Question 77

Present Perfect : Used to indicate actions that started in the past and are still continuing. Structure : has/have + verb from

Answer 77

Past Perfect : Used to indicate double past. Structure : had + verb form Usage : 1) To indicate that one of the two events of the past occurred first. The second event always has to be in simple past. Eg : By the time I learnt c++, Python had taken the world by storm. First : Python 'had taken' over Second : I 'learnt' c++ 2) Past perfect can also be used with a time marker : BY 2011. she had travelled to India twice. (Again, travelling to India happens before 2011) You DON'T NEED to use past perfect always in such circumstances. Other wording can also be used instead. Eg : After I earned my degree, I spent a year working at a bank. (sequence of events is clear) Tricky example : The doctor told me that I had a heart attack. Since the doctor telling you is the second of two examples, 'told' is simple past which is correct. However, 'had' should be 'had had' to indicate double past as per past perfect. Further, as per past perfect, 'had' alone does not work, you need 'had' + verb form. Bottom Line : You can only legally use past perfect when a sentence is trying to talk about the first past event in a sequence of two or more past events or timeframes. If that circumstance doesn't exist, but the sentence is trying to use past perfect, then that answer choice is wrong.

Question 78

Correlative conjunctions : either/or, neither/nor, both/and, whether/or, not only/but also, not only/but, not only/but/as well, not/but, rather/than MEMORIZE ALL OF THESE. Both parts of a correlative conjunction must appear in a sentence. Do not accept correct sentences that partially use correlative conjunctions.

Answer 78

a/an/the are articles which are basically adjectives WHICH MODIFY NOUNS.

Question 79

IMPORTANT Acting as an object of a verb and being a modifier are very different things. 'Aadith sat there and wondered which came first, the chicken or the egg' Here 'which came first' is not a modifier of wondered, it is the object. That makes it a noun clause and not a relative clause

Answer 79

The professor was a supposed expert in illuminated manuscripts -> correct sentence. Some people believe that true equality cannot be reached when people of different genders are educated and housed separately. Here 'separately' modifies both educated and housed. Only rarely do people who are not looking for dinosaur fossils happen to find one : the verb is 'do happen' The department had planned to go out, but only recently did it get the funding that it needed to do so : the verb is 'did get' Some guitarists, when playing heavy metal, do so rather skillfully : here, the verb is 'do'

Question 80

Which of the two sentences mentioned below conveys this idea accurately : Idea : Cosmologists have a theory that most of the universe is made up of dark energy, which is a mysterious force. 1) Cosmologists theorize that the universe consists mostly of dark energy, with anywhere from two-thirds to three-quarters of the universe composed of this mysterious force 2) Cosmologists theorize that the universe consists of mostly dark energy, with anywhere from two-thirds to three quarters of the universe composed of this mysterious force.

Answer 80

Sentence 1) is correct. The placement of adverb 'mostly' creates a critical difference. In 1) 'mostly' modifies 'consists' which fits with the idea that most of what makes up the universe is dark energy In 2) 'mostly' modifies 'dark' which incorrectly implies that the energy in question is not quite/completely dark or dark only some of the time. Furthermore, this indicates that the universe consists of nothing else but this 'mostly' dark energy.

Question 81

Idea: Even when the chess team goes on vacation, it practices on Saturday. It does not practice on any other day of the week. 1) The chess team, even while it is on vacation, practices on Saturday only. 2) Even while it is on vacation, the chess team only practices on Saturday

Answer 81

Sentence 1) is correct. 1) only modifies 'on Saturday' and properly communicates the idea that, of all the days of the week, Saturday is the one day when the chess team practices. 2) Does not match the idea as 'only' modifies 'practices'. This placement makes the sentence convey that, on Saturdays, the chess team does nothing other than practice. IT ALSO, leaves open the possibility that the team practices on other days as well. When you see an adverb, find which verb/adjective/ adverb it refers to AND IGNORE NOUN since it cannot refer to nouns to see if it makes sense

Question 82

Is this sentence correct? If not, what's wrong? Workers digging in NZ discovered an ancient waka, which is a Maori word for 'canoe', that partially had been completed and then buried.

Answer 82

Incorrect. A Maori word for 'canoe' cannot be completed and buried. Also, partially HAD BEEN completed doesn't make sense. It should be 'had been partially completed'.

Question 83

Is this sentence correct? If not, what's wrong? Justine still refuses to create an online profile, even though several of her friends met people on dating websites whom they ended up marrying

Answer 83

Incorrect. 'on dating websites' : a prepositional phrase can modify both 'met' and 'people' which makes this ambiguous. It should ideally refer to 'met' but if it refers to 'people', it can convey the nonsensical meaning that the people whom Justine's friends met and married were 'people on dating websites' as if these people are continuously on dating websites, even when getting married. A modifying prepositional phrase must always be as close as possible to the word that it modifies.

Question 84

Is this sentence correct? If not, what's wrong? 1) Running fast along the shore, it was clear that the Shiba Inu was having a great time. 2) Having beaten the returns of S&P 500 over the past 10 years, it is likely that the Gemini Fund will soon close to new investors.

Answer 84

Both are incorrect. Both use the expletive it but in a way that doesn't make sense with the opening modifier. 1) After re-arrangement : Running fast along the shore, that the Shiba Inu was having a great time was clear. 'Running fast along the shore' incorrectly refers to 'that' 2) After re-arrangement : Having beaten.., that the Gemini Fund will soon close to new investors is likely. 'Having beaten...' incorrectly refers to 'that'

Question 85

When an introductory modifier is a noun modifier, the noun that it modifies must appear right after the introductory modifier.

Answer 85

Noun can be a noun phrase/clause.

Question 86

In a case of a dangling modifier, the noun that the modifier is supposed to describe is completely absent from the sentence. Such a sentence is always incorrect.

Answer 86

The modifiers can be very long and piled up also. All that maters is that the noun they're modifying should be present. (Should be present right after if it's an introductory modifier) Eg : Having eaten at the Inn of the SR, an amazing eatery just NW of LA serving a wide assortment of culinary delights, the food at TK ,another amazing eatery in LA, is better. NOTE : Here, 'an amazing....delights' modifies the Inn of the SR (PART OF A PARTICIPIAL PHRASE) but the modifier 'having eaten...SR' doesn't have a noun to refer to. Hence, it is dangling. Always seeking ways to improve, Jonathan's work is commendable : Dangling modifier, 'always...improve' cannot modify the possessive Jonathan's and further it is acting like an adjective in the compound noun Jonathan's work which cannot be what is being modified. Having maintained a strong connection to her Polish roots despite becoming a naturalized French citizen, the two time Nobel Prize winning chemist and physicist MC, named .... The above statement is correct. 'having maintained...' correctly modifies the NOUN PHRASE/SUBJECT 'the two time...MC'

Question 87

Is this sentence correct? If not, what's wrong? Determined to win the respect of his colleagues, who viewed his prominent position within the company as undeserved, his ideas as risky, and his management style as inexperienced, in the year after his promotion, the brash, young upstart more than doubled the company's earnings.

Answer 87

Correct. The modifier 'determined...colleagues' correctly modifies 'brash, young upstart'

Question 88

Is this sentence correct? If not, what's wrong? Inspection of goods during production is often recommended, because, inspecting them only after production, an entire order of finished goods can be found to be flawed.

Answer 88

TRICKYY Dangling modifier The modifier created via the use of this choice is meant to modify someone who is inspecting after production; it indicates that the clause that follows will be about someone 'inspecting them after production'. However, no people are mentioned in the clause.

Question 89

Be on the lookout for a modifying phrase followed by a possessive noun. In such a case, the modification and the resulting sentence may be illogical. Incorrect : Eating the delicious guacamole after having been on a diet, Robert's face showed enjoyment.

Answer 89

For a sentence to be effective, it must be clear what any modifiers in the sentence modify. Be on the lookout for squinting modifiers, which are modifiers between two words or PHRASES, either of which the modifier could modify. Compare the parts of speech occurring before and after the modifier and see if the modifier ambiguously can refer to both Incorrect: Although the board of directors could not come to agreement on many of the issues upon which it was tasked with deciding, it did agree [at its first meeting] to finalize the plan for the reduction of interest rate expense, which was presented by shareholders some month ago. Incorrect : People who train [consistently] achieve score increases.

Question 90

A restrictive clause somehow restricts the meaning of the noun that the restrictive relative clause modifies. Accordingly, the information that a restrictive relative clause adds is essential to the meaning of the sentence. Use 'that' with restrictive A non-restrictive relative clause, on the other hand, does not restrict the meaning of the noun that it modifies. Thus, a nonrestrictive relative clause adds information to the sentence but is not vital to the sentence's meaning. Use 'which' with non-restrictive

Answer 90

If it can be eliminated WITHOUT THE CORE MEANING of the sentence changing, it is non-restrictive. Non-restrictive relative clauses must always be set off from the rest of the sentences by commas. NOTE : which need not always appear as a nonrestrictive clause. When it appears as 'which one' ('one' may be dropped sometimes), no commas need to preceed it : Eg : Claudia does not know which apple she will eat. Also, when 'which' is immediately preceeded by a preposition : in which, by which, through which, to which etc. no comma will preceed 'which'

Question 91

Is this sentence correct? If not, what's wrong? Many first time visitors to NYC, known for having an aggressive culture, are surprised, finding the locals to be friendly and helpful

Answer 91

'known for having an aggressive culture' doesn't clearly modify either NYC or the visitors (Many first time visitors to NYC).

Question 92

With a few exceptions, relative clauses must come immediately after the nouns that they modify. Exceptions : 1) A relative clause may be separated from the noun that it modifies by another modifier, such as a prepositional phrase or an appositive. A relative clause placed after such structures is understood to modify the shortest logical target. NOTE : only modifiers are allowed between relative clause and target. Not verbs, nouns etc. Eg: 1) The town on the island, which is a sleepy seaside village, attracts many tourists each summer. Here 'on the island' is a prepositional phrase. Hence, we can allow the relative clause 'which is ...' to modify the noun 'town' even though they are not next to one another. 2) The B3 Bomber, a modern military fighter jet, had two engines with movable parts that direct their exhaust, each of which produced 35000 pounds of thrust. Here, there are a lot of modifiers, the 'each of which' will modify the shortest logical target. 'exhaust' and 'movable parts' cannot be logical targets. Hence, we select 'engines' 3) The most beautiful house in the valley, which runs between two mountains, is not overly large. Here 'which runs...' has valley as it's target since it is shortest AND logical.

Answer 92

Exception: 2) Certain types of MAIN verbs that indicate arrival, positioning, development and coming into being can exist between a relative clause and the noun that it modifies in cases in which there is unlikely to be any confusion and the author would like to avoid putting the main verb after a long intervening relative clause. NOTE : THERE CAN BE BOTH a main verb and a prepositional phrase before a relative clause ONLY IF the verb belongs to the category mentioned in 2) and refers to the noun the relative clause refers to. The prepositional phrase should also refer to the noun the relative clause refers to AND NOT ANYTHING ELSE (not the main verb etc.) -> VERY SUBTLE BUT IMPORTANT POINT

Question 93

Is this sentence correct? If not, what's wrong? The girl with whom I was speaking was quite funny. The woman who was speaking to us at the mall had a bird, who had appeared on TV

Answer 93

1) Correct 2) Incorrect, use 'that' for non people/ non human animals. When people make up unified groups such as armies, teams, classes, groups, companies and committees, we use relative pronoun 'that' or 'which' for these groups and not 'who'/'whom'. The above is NOT true, use usual logic of collective nouns : https://gmatclub.com/forum/as-rainfall-began-to-decrease-in-the-southwest-about-the-middle-of-the-86088.html 'it' can be both subject and object pronoun ``` Put object (he/she/they) and subject(him/her/them) pronoun in place of 'who/whom' to check which of 'who/whom' must be used. You might need to rearrange the sentence a little If a pronoun is the subject of a relative clause, it will be subjective case (Hence, 'whom' cannot be used in this way to start a relative clause) ```

Question 94

Is this statement correct? if not, what's wrong? 1) At the university's wellness clinic, a holistic method for solving cancer is being developed that has few negative side effects but, at this stage, has been working for only a fraction of the people who have used it. 2) A new type of fiber is being developed in the company's main laboratory, which is expected to be used as a strengthening component in a variety of products.

Answer 94

1) Correct. Note that prepositional phrase 'for solving cancer' modifies the noun (a holistic method) which the relative clause 'that has few..' modifies. Further, the main verb 'is being developed' ALSO modifies the same noun which is the relative clause's target. Hence, this statement is correct. 2) Incorrect. The main verb (is being) correctly modifies the noun target (fiber) of the relative clause (which...) BUT the prepositional phrase (in the company's main lab) modifies the verb (is being developed) and NOT the noun target hence this is wrong.

Question 95

Present participial phrases can be put into 3 categories : 1) Present participial phrases that are used to restrictively modify specific nouns 2) Present participial phrases that appear at the beginning or in the middle of clauses, are nonrestrictive, and can be treated as noun modifiers for the purpose of placement 3) Present participial phrases that appear at the end of clauses and usually, but not always, modify the preceding clause.

Answer 95

1) Present participial phrases that are used to restrictively modify specific nouns Eg : The cat licking its paws is considering taking a nap. Here 'licking its paws' is restrictively modifying the cat to indicate that we are not talking about all cat. We are instead talking about a particular cat that is licking its paws. Note that even though dropping 'licking its paws' will leave us with THE cat, it still applies to all cats in general and not a particular cat. We can tell that a present participial phrase modifies the noun that immediately precedes it by noticing that there is no comma between the phrase and the immediately preceding noun.

Question 96

2) Present participial phrases that appear at the beginning or in the middle of clauses, are nonrestrictive, and can be treated as noun modifiers for the purpose of placement For the purpose of evaluating placement, a present participial phrase that appears at the beginning or in the middle of a clause and is set off from the rest of the clause by a comma or commas can be treated as a nonrestrictive noun modifier. Difference between 1) and 2) : 1) The team members waiting for the delayed bus wondered whether they would arrive at the stadium on time. Here, we use 'waiting for the delayed bus' in a restrictive way so we're referring to only a particular subset of the team member. We're referring to the team members WHO ARE WAITING for the delayed bus only. 2) The team members, waiting for the delayed bus, wondered whether they would arrive at the stadium on time. Here, we use 'waiting for the delayed bus' in a non-restrictive way so we're referring to all the team members and we're adding non vital information by saying that they are waiting for the delayed bus. Standing behind the fence, the fans could barely see the players who were warming up for the game. Here, by setting off 'standing ...fence' using commas, we indicate that it is non restrictive. Hence, we're referring to all the fans here.

Answer 96

The noun that follows an introductory phrase that begins with a participle must be the noun that that phrase is meant to modify. You can stack present participial phrases at the beginning of the sentence which will refer to the noun that follows. Eg : Dredging the deep lake trench, using equipment that was stolen, the discovery team found the hidden treasure. Here 'dredging the deep lake trench' is stacked on 'using equipment..' AND BOTH REFER to 'the discovery team'

Question 97

Is this statement correct? if not, what's wrong? Having demonstrated that people can change gene expression by meditating, there is a likelihood that the study will have a significant impact on the field of epigenetics in the head researcher's opinion

Answer 97

Incorrect Reason 1) 'there is a likelihood' is illogical, there is always a likelihood between 0 to 100. So, saying the likelihood exists since something has been demonstrated doesn't make sense. Reason 2) Opening modifier doesn't have a logical target. (seems to target 'there' which is illogical) Reason 3) 'in the head researcher's opinion seems to modify' 'field of epigenetics' which is nonsensical since it suggests the the field of epigenetics exists in the researcher's opinion.

Question 98

3) A present participial phrase can be used to modify an entire preceding clause, in which case the phrase is set off from the preceding clause by a comma and normally has its agent the subject of the clause that it modifies. Exceptions : 1) When a closing participial phrase begins with 'including'. Eg : Ringo Starr sang songs that are still widely played today, INCLUDING 'yellow submarine'. Here, the meaning to convey is not that Ringo Starr (subject) included yellow submarine, it instead gives an example of the songs he sang. 2) When the closing participial modifies an actor-action pair that appears between the subject and the closing participial phrase. Eg : The video was of a man picking apples, singing as he worked. Here 'singing as he worked' doesn't modify the subject 'the video'. It modifies the non subject actor action pair 'man picking apples'.

Answer 98

A present participial phrase always indicates simultaneity; the event described by a participial phrase must occur at the same time as the event described by the clause that the phrase modifies. NOTE : THIS HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH USING CORRECT TENSE ETC. THIS IS PURELY LOGICAL Incorrect : Working hard for hours, the crew took a break. The crew can't take a break while working working hard for hours. Incorrect : Using fresh ingredients, the chef looked for a recipe for the meal. Correct : Using fresh ingredients, the chef prepared the meal. Incorrect : The famous actress took a break from filming, knocking a sacred rock from where it had been placed and almost killing a sound technician This one is tricky everything sits right grammatically but if you look into the meaning, the participial phrase 'knocking ... technician' will modify the previous clause to indicate that the fact that the actress took a break knocked a sacred rock which is illogical even though the two actions can theoretically happen simultaneously. Incorrect : Erupting, on average, once every two years, Mount Etna has already erupted twice this year. Both can't happen simultaneously. Correct : Although, on average, Mount Etna erupts once every two years, it has already erupted twice this year.

Question 99

Are the two sentences equivalent? If not, what's the diff? 1) The photographer crept closer to the deer seeking to avoid detection by hiding among the bushes. 2) The photographer crept closer to the deer, seeking to avoid detection by hiding among the bushes.

Answer 99

They are different. 1) Since there is no comma between deer and seeking, the participial phrase modifies deer hence conveys that the deer were seeking to avoid detection... 2) There is a comma here, hence it modifies the entire previous clause and takes the photographer as the agent who is seeking to avoid detection.

Question 100

Is this statement correct? if not, what's wrong? The building housing the university's rare book collection has various book preservation related design features, dominating the space in the quadrangle in which it is located.

Answer 100

Incorrect. The present participial phrase is unrelated to the preceding clause and seems to indicate that the fact that the building has various preservation features causes it to dominate the space in the quadrangle.

Question 101

Past participial phrases can be used to restrictively modify nouns. In these situations, the past participial phrase is placed directly before or after the noun that it modifies and is not separated from the noun by commas. Eg : The damaged beyond recognition automobile once belonged to a famous actor. Note that the participial phrase comes before the noun here.

Answer 101

A past participial phrase can be used to non-restrictively modify a noun. In such a case, the phrase may appear directly before or after the noun that it modifies and is separated from the noun and other sentence elements by commas.

Question 102

Identify the participial phrases : The restoration of the classic building, long neglected by its previous owners, required extensive repair along with tasteful replacement of worn and decayed components.

Answer 102

'long neglected by its previous owners' and 'worn and decayed'. NOT 'required...' . That is the main verb. There is a difference. Always check if it's a verb or modifier/adjective.

Question 103

Mixing up of restrictive and non-restrictive past participial phrases can cause incorrect meanings. Eg : 1) Only a tiny percentage of students pursue degrees in physics considered one of the most challenging college subjects. Here 'considered...' is being used in a restrictive way to refer to a part of physics that is considered one of the most challenging college subjects which is illogical since physics itself is a subject and there is no subject called 'physics considered... subjects' 2) The original Eiffel Tower built in 1887 was constructed along with other unique structures for an exposition. Here 'built ...' is used in a restrictive way to mean that there are multiple Eiffel towers but we are talking only about the one built in 1887. This is illogical. 3) Most animals, found in the deepest regions of the ocean, have slow metabolisms that allow them to survive on small quantities of food. Here 'found..' is used in a non-restrictive manner which is simply used to add non-essential information. So, it seems to say that most animals are found in the deepest regions of the ocean which is illogical. Always consider the additional information being added by a non-restrictive phrase to check whether the information added when combined with the noun target makes sense. I.e. consider if 'most animals are found in the deepest regions of the ocean' alone makes sense or not.

Answer 103

Absolute phrase consists of ONLY a noun and its modifiers and it modifies an entire clause. They're majorly used in two ways : 1) To add descriptive information to clause 2) To add explanatory information to clause Incorrect : The environmentalist freed the bear, its foot caught in a trap. Since absolute phrases modify the entire clause, it is illogical to modify an entire clause about freeing a bear by saying that its foot was caught since it does not explain or describe the act of freeing the bear. Correct : The deadline nearing, Emmet worked through the weekend to complete his application, a pot of coffee by his side. Both ' the deadline nearing' and 'a pot of coffee by his side' are absolute phrases which are used correctly. NOTE : The absolute phrase has to have a logical connection to the main point of the sentence. It can't just relate to any component/part of the sentence, such as the direct object. Eg : 1) Its bustling factories shuttered and its grand old mansions crumbling and condemned, the recession made Josh's hometown look like a different universe. The above sentence is incorrect since the absolute phrase 'its bustling ...' has to have a logical connection to the main point of the sentence which seems to be the recession's effect on Josh's hometown. However, the recession cannot have bustling factories and mansions. 2) Environmentalists have noticed increasing concentrations of carbon monoxide in the atmosphere, findings consistent with the growth of industrialization all over the globe. The absolute phrase 'findings...globe' is consistent with the MAIN POINT of the sentence i.e. Environmentalists' observation about Carbon monoxide in the atmosphere. NOTE : the absolute modifier has to have a LOGICAL CONNECTION TO THE MAIN POINT OF THE SENTENCE, NOT to the subject or noun of the sentence. If you tried to link it to the subject i.e. environmentalists, you would get incorrect reasoning. 3) Their eyes wide with curiosity and excitement, the children ran to where the meteorite had crashed to the ground. Here the absolute phrase 'their eyes wide ...' correctly has a logical connection to the main point : the children running to some place. Note, it doesn't modify only children, since that would mean children on a standalone basis have eyes wide with curiosity and excitement which is not true. What we mean to convey is that while the children were running to some place, their eyes were wide with curiosity and excitement. 4) Businesses across domains have realized that 80% of their profits come from 20% of their customer accounts, a phenomenon substantiated by the Pareto principle. Here, the absolute phrase 'a phenomenon....' refers to the main point of the preceding sentence : Businesses' observation about their profits

Question 104

Participial phrase usage : 1) Appearing at the beginning of the clause/sentence Usage : Modifies the subject of the clause immediately after the participial phrase. 2) Middle of clause/sentence : noun immediately before 3) Appearing at the end of the clause/sentence. a) Past participial Usage : Modifies the noun immediately before the participial b) Present participial Usage : If not preceded by comma, modifies the noun or noun phrase before the participial Usage : If preceded by comma, modifies the SUBJECT of the preceding clause or the entire clause.

Answer 104

When present participial phrases appear at the end of the clause, the action depicted by the participial phrase should be ATTRIBUTABLE to the subject of the immediate preceding clause and concurrent with the action of the preceding clause. Eg : 1) The 22 Oscars won by Walt Disney were awarded to him between 1932 and 1969, outnumbering the Oscars ever awarded to anyone else in the Oscar history. The above statement is incorrect since 'outnumbering the Oscars ever awarded...' is not an ACTION that can be ATTRIBUTED to 'the 22 Oscars won by Walt Disney' 2) The newly wed bride, proudly flashed the wedding ring, an elaborately crafted piece of jewelry encrusted with diamonds, adorning her hand. Here, the closing participial phrase is NOT preceded by a comma, that comma belongs to the appositive 'an elaborate...diamonds'. Hence, the core sentence is : The newly wed bride, proudly flashed the wedding ring adorning her hand which is CORRECT. Had you thought it to be preceded by a comma, it would have incorrectly modified the 'newly wed bride'

Question 105

Use 'between' only with two things or people Use 'among' for three or more If you wish to make a comparison using the word 'numbers', use 'greater than', not 'more than' (which might imply you have more numbers in quantity as opposed to magnitude of the numbers) Eg : The rare griffin is not extinct; its numbers are now suspected to be much GREATER than before.

Answer 105

Increase and decrease ARE NOT the same as greater and less. Increase/decrease express change of one thing over time. Greater and less signal a comparison between two things Eg : The price of silver increased by 10 dollars. The price of silver is $5 greater than the price of copper.

Question 106

Having observed the inadequacy of the standard response to the ravages of polio, Elizabeth Kenny developed an alternative method for mitigating them; becoming known as 'the Kenny method', [it] was adopted worldwide [it] can refer to the 'an alternative method' EVEN THOUGH it is in a separate clause

Answer 106

It was after observing the inadequacy of the standard response to the ravages of polio when Elizabeth Kenny developed an alternative method, which, in mitigating them, became known as the 'Kenny method'. 1) 'it' has no logical referent 2) Something cannot become known as 'Kenny method' by/in the process of mitigating something. To understand this further, observe that 'in mitigating them' is a prepositional phrase acting adverbially and modifying 'became known'. In observing the inadequacy of the standard response to the ravages of polio, Elizabeth Kenny developed an alternative method. 1) You can't develop something 'in the process' of or 'by observing' the inadequacy. The mere act of 'observing the inadequacy' would not be the means by which she developed an alternative method. To understand further, observe that 'in observing...polio' is a prepositional phrase acting adverbially. Use the associated logic to understand the above mentioned explanation.

Question 107

Is this statement correct? if not, what's wrong? The six contestants, using pantry items such as canned beans and biscuit mix, each scrambled to prepare a four course meal that could be served in a fine-dining restaurant and stood expectantly before the judges as the envelope containing the winner's name was opened.

Answer 107

Incorrect 'using pantry...mix' modifies 'the six contestants'. So, while it makes sense that they used pantry items while scrambling to prepare food. IT DOES NOT make sense to say that they used pantry items as they stood expectantly before the judges. Parallelism is off.

Question 108

Is this statement correct? if not, what's wrong? The six contestants each used pantry items such as canned beans and biscuit mix and scrambled to prepare a four-course meal that could be served in a fine-dining restaurant, standing expectantly before the judges as the envelope containing the winner's name was opened.

Answer 108

Incorrect By using the present participial phrase 'standing....judges' to modify the main clause, the sentence conveys the illogical meaning that the contestants were standing before the judges as they 'used pantry items...meal'. They CANNOT be doing both these things at the same time.

Question 109

Is this statement correct? if not, what's wrong? The report stated that, while riding the train, a man had his electronic smoking device explode in his pants pocket and had resulting third-degree burns, which had caused him being rushed to a hospital.

Answer 109

Incorrect 1) It conveys that the man had the electronic device explode on purpose. 2) It conveys the explosion and resulting third degree burns as two separate disconnected events. 2) 'caused him being' is incorrect. Something cannot cause 'him'. It should be 'his being'

Question 110

Is this statement correct? if not, what's wrong? Its ability to survive without a head for up to a week confirmed by scientists, the cockroach is truly one of the most uncanny creatures on the planet.

Answer 110

Correct WHEN WE TALK ABOUT RULES RELATED TO PAST AND PRESENT PARTICIPIAL, WE CONFLATE NOUNS WITH NOUN PHRASES AND NOUN CLAUSES. SAME FOR RELATIVE CLAUSES AND APPOSITIVES. Here, 'its ability to survive without a head for up to a week' is a noun phrase (with prepositional phrases added on top of 'its ability to survive') WHICH IS MODIFIED BY THE PAST PARTICIPIAL 'confirmed by scientists' WHICH IS CORRECT. The whole structure 'its ability...by scientists' is an absolute phrase.

Question 111

Is this statement correct? if not, what's wrong? In a two-year course designed for undergraduate students, the physicist Richard Feynman presented a comprehensive introduction to modern physics

Answer 111

Correct 'In a two year...students' is NOT a noun modifier, it is an adverbial modifier so it need not follow the touch rule and modifies 'presented' and NOT 'the physicist'. To decide if a prepositional phrase is acting as an adverb or adjective is decided only via meaning. FEW USEFUL HEURISTICS : 1) Move the prepositional phrase to after the verb and see if it makes sense. If it does then it is acting adverbially. 2) Convert the prepositional phrase to a relative clause using relative pronouns as required in context with the sentence. This will convert it to a noun modifier. Now, if the sentence still makes sense after modifying the noun, it is acting as a noun modifier. Both of the above can be used in tandem. Let's apply the above heuristics here: 1) Moving the prepositional phrase to after the verb : The physicist RF presented, 'in a two year course designed for undergraduate students', a comprehensive... You can also move it to the end SINCE ADVERBIAL MODIFIERS NEED NOT FOLLOW THE TOUCH RULE : The physicist....to modern physics, in a two year course ..... Both of the above makes sense, it might be acting adverbially. 2) Convert to relative clause : Most logical conversion : adding 'who was' since the relative clause has to START WITH A RELATIVE pronoun : hence we need to refer to RF, so we use 'who' to get the physicist RF 'who was in a two year course designed for undergraduate students', presented a comprehensive... : Doesn't make sense HENCE, it is acting adverbially

Question 112

Present tense : We typically use the present tense to describe events that happen routinely or to discuss facts and universal truths that do not change over time or to describe situations that exist continuously. We also use it to describe events in a literary work since they have been immortalized as part of the work Eg : is, loves, enjoy, celebrate. NOTE : We talk about the EVENTS here which are conveyed by the entire sentence/clause.

Answer 112

Simple past tense : Used to describe an event that occurred and ended in the past. Most commonly of the form verb + '-ed' Future tense : Used to discuss events that have not occurred yet but will occur in the future. Usual forms : 1) 'will' + verb 2) 'a form of to be' + 'going to' + verb Eg : am going to go, is going to start, are going to decline.

Question 113

In SC, we need to use keywords, key phrases and other context clues to arrive at a logical timeline of events. 'every time' indicates that the actions occur in the SAME time period.

Answer 113

ALWAYS CHECK IF YOU HAVE A NOUN THAT IS BEING MODIFIED BEFORE APPLYING THE NOUN MODIFIER RULES When prepositional phrases act as noun modifiers, they describe the noun immediately before. When they acts as adverbs, they modify the WHOLE CLAUSE before OR after WHEN THEY ACT ADVERBIALLY, THEY TAKE THE SUBJECT OF THE CLAUSE THEY MODIFY AS THEIR AGENT (SIMILAR TO WHAT PARTICIPIAL PHRASES DO). Use logical meaning to understand what a prepositional phrase modifies (phrase or clause) and then check if it is ambiguously placed or not.

Question 114

Note that a participial phrase can modify a NOUN phrase as well. In that case you can have a noun + modifier before/after the participial phrase which is getting modified. Noun phrase A noun phrase obviously has a noun. It also includes some associated modifiers. Examples are given below A lovely long drink A wet morning Black and white socks The tall and handsome professor The modifiers that accompany a noun can be adjectives, participial phrases, infinitive phrases or prepositional phrases.

Answer 114

To decide if a prepositional phrase is acting as an adverb or adjective is decided only via meaning. FEW USEFUL HEURISTICS : 1) Move the prepositional phrase to after the verb and see if it makes sense. If it does then it is acting adverbially. 2) Convert the prepositional phrase to a relative clause using relative pronouns as required in context with the sentence. This will convert it to a noun modifier. Now, if the sentence still makes sense after modifying the noun, it is acting as a noun modifier. Both of the above can be used in tandem. An opening prepositional phrase ALMOST always acts like an adverb. Eg : They phased out the new version [after being held for only two years]. 1) They phased out 'after being held for only two years' the new version : The structure is correct, usage of 'they' is incorrect. Replace with 'the expo' to get 'the expo phased out after being held for only two years' to see that the structure is correct. 2) Now convert to relative clause : 'that was' if for new version or 'who were' if for 'they': a) They who were after being held for only two years phased out the new version b) They phased out the new version that was after being held for only two years. See that using it adverbially makes more sense.

Question 115

The present tense is typically used in describing things that happen routinely or in discussing facts and truths that remain true over time. Present tense is also used to describe policies, laws, rules etc that were enacted at some point in the past but still have their effects in the present. (similar to use case of present perfect) Eg : The dogs enjoy running in the woods, Rome is the Capital of Italy. Simple past tense is used to describe events that occurred and ended in the past. Simple past tense is mostly created by adding '-ed' to the stem of the verb. Eg : We walked the dog before sunrise, He finished the paper just before the deadline. The future tense is used for discussing events that have not yet occurred but will occur in the future. Usually formed by adding 'will' to the base verb OR 'a form of 'to be' + 'going to' + base verb ' Common forms of 'to be' : is, am, are Eg : The sun will burn out one day, I am going to go to the beach later today, Sara is going to start taking French lessons, Since the interest rates are high, inflation is going to begin eroding the money of citizens. We use context clues present in the sentence to determine which tense to use. 1) Eliminate versions with tenses that cannot work together. 2) Use other context clues to eliminate versions with tenses that cannot work. Eg : In the past, as soon as etc. IMPORTANT : If you have phrases like 'every time' etc., it indicates that the verbs occurring in that sentence need to be of the same tense. Present tense : don't , doesn't Future tense : won't Many people insist that a full moon negatively affects human behavior, a belief that dates back to classical antiquity : Since 'insist' tells us that the sentence refers to a current belief, the present tense 'dates' is correct. When an action began in the past and continues into the present, we use the present perfect tense. It is also used for facts which happened in the past and continue to be true in the present. Form : 'has/have' + past participle of the main verb. Eg : 1) I have lived here for 5 years. 2) Bit tricky : She has won the gold medal in the school quiz twice. (the fact that she has won the gold twice continues to be true at the present moment). 3) He has been to Istanbul 6 times 4) She has wrecked the car again. When 'since' is used to convey that a subject has engaged in an action from the past to the present, the present perfect tense must be used. We cannot use present perfect when the sentence describes an event that clearly ended in the past. 'For', 'Over' and 'During' provide us with clues that the present perfect tense should be used. Eg : 1)Native Americans have lived in the United States for the last 15000 years. 2) Over the last 1 mil years, humans have undergone evolutionary changes. 3) During this election, our country has lost some of its cohesion. Consider the sentence AS A WHOLE to understand if the action continues to the present or it ended in the past. Using markers alone doesn't always help. The past perfect tense is used with the action that occurred deeper in the past, and the simple past tense is used with the action that occurred in the more recent past. (Note that both events occurred in the past). Past perfect : 'had' + past participle of a verb. Correct : The travel restrictions that had been in place for nearly 60 years were finally repealed. Incorrect : The travel restrictions that were in place for nearly 60 years were finally repealed. The above is incorrect since by using the past tense 'were' and past tense 'were repealed', the sentence indicates that the restrictions were in place for nearly 60 sixty years AND were repealed AT THE SAME TIME. Since restriction that 'were' repealed no longer exist, it is not possible that the restrictions were in place and were repealed at the same time. Tricky : As the tiger was running into the clearing, it saw a herd of elephants and stopped in its track. The above is CORRECT. The conjunction 'as' is used to indicate that the events occurred simultaneously. So, the sentence is setup to express that the tiger's seeing the herd of elephants occurred simultaneously with, rather than before, the tiger's running into the clearing. Further, 'saw' and 'stopped' also indicate simultaneity which is correct since if we used past perfect, it would mean that the tiger seeing the herd stopped and then it stopped in its track. Trick : Rearrange the sentences to figure out the tense usage more easily. Eg : Because of the unusual heat wave, by the time the guests arrived, the hotel, which 'had been' composed mostly of ice, was gone. Rearrange the above : the hotel, which 'had been' composed mostly of ice, was gone, by the time the guests arrived. => the being composed of ice has to end before it being gone. Hence, use past perfect had been TRICKYYY : Although the mountain 'was/had been/has been' quite steep, the well-trained cyclists were able to ride up it quite quickly. Incorrect : has been : present perfect indicates that the mountain has been steep at times from some point in the past up to the present time, and does NOT indicate that the mountain was steep when the cyclists were able to ride up it. Incorrect : had been : indicates that the mountain was steep before the cyclists were able to die up it and was no longer steep when the cyclists were able to ride up it. Correct : was : indicates that the mountain was steep at the SAME POINT IN TIME as when the cyclists were able to ride up it. You can get quick eliminations if the past perfect tense and simple past tense have been reversed. The past perfect tense must be used to indicate that an action or event was COMPLETED before a specified date or time period in the past. Eg : By 2010, everyone had seen the moon-walk. NOTE : Not every sentence about something occurring by a time in the past has to use past perfect. If a sentence about something occurring in the past is not about an action or event COMPLETED by a time in the past, it can use another tense. Eg : By the time the music started, the sun was setting. By 1910, many people were using electric cars. Although, at first, the player's playing sounded rough, by the opening day of the season, it was well blended and rich. The above is correct since being well blended and rich didn't end by the opening day of the season. If a sentence makes clear the time sequence of past events without the use of the past perfect tense, the use of the past perfect tense is not necessary. Usually the above happens when we have 'before' or 'after' in the sentence. Eg : Correct : Cody inspected the engine before he sat in the cockpit. Incorrect : Cody had inspected the engine before he sat in the cockpit. Correct : Freddie purchased the sailboat after he learned to sail. Incorrect : Freddie purchased the sailboat after he had learned to sail. Examples without before/after : Maddy was a prolific composer until his use of alcohol caught up with him Evy developed a method for dancing in 1980, but, even in 2018, few people were aware of it's existence. Hence, DON'T eliminate options ONLY on the grounds that they don't use past perfect. If a sentence makes the order clear without it, it is still correct. When the latest installment of COD franchise came out, gamers, many of whom were waiting for it for months, purchased 17 million copies within the first eight days. Incorrect : The use of the 'were waiting' past continuous with 'purchased' simple past results in the sentence conveying that the gamers were waiting for the game for monthly simultaneously with their purchasing copies of the game. A) Before its becoming popular as a companion animal, the collie, also known as 'the rough collie', for centuries served as a herding dog B) Before they became popular as companion animals, collies, also known as 'rough collies', have served for centuries as herding dogs. A) is correct. Since the main clause is about an event that occurred before a point in the past, the point in time when collies became popular as companion animals, the use of present perfect which seems to connect the event the collie's serving to the present, does not make sense. VV IMP : Just because A uses simple past 'served' does NOT mean that they did not serve after becoming popular as companion animals (since simple past is used for an event that ended in the past), we just leave that open to interpretation. We are just trying to say that : Before they become popular as companion animals.... serving for centuries as herding dogs had happened/completed. The future perfect tense indicates that an event that has not yet happened will be COMPLETED before another event that has not yet happened or before a specific time in the future. Structure : 'will' + 'have' + past participle Eg : will have seen, will have worked etc. By Monday, he will have a week to complete the assignment. The above is CORRECT since we don't have any future event here that will be completed before another future event. 'having a week to complete the assignment' will start by Monday and not end by then. Plus this is not future perfect tense anyway since it lacks a PAST PARTICIPLE By Monday, he will have had a week to finish the assignment. This is CORRECT. Has a diff meaning than above. The future in the past is used when sentences about past events refer to events that were in the future when the past events occurred. Structure: 'would' + verb , 'was going to' etc. (there are more, can't be standardized) Eg : 1) They were convinced that they would find gold soon. 2) The baker said that the cake was going to be delivered yesterday morning. IMPORTANT : Our guide said that he would be available to go whitewater rafting next week. : This is correct. Even though the time period of the predicted event, 'next week' is still in future, it is correct to use future in the past tense here. TRICK : Break sentences down to a simple sentence to check which verb to use, complex sentences with multiple tenses are confusing. Eg : Before the contestants' final answers were revealed, everyone was certain that the previous week's winner will win again. Remove the fluff and keep only 'everyone was certain that the previous week's winner will win again' : see that 'will win' is incorrect and it should be 'would win' The continuous tenses which are also called the progressive tenses are used to discuss actions that are, were or will be in progress. Present continuous tense is used for describing events that are temporarily ongoing in the present. Structure : present tense of 'to be' ('is/are' usually) + present participle of base verb Eg : The dog is running on the beach. Past continuous tense is used to describe an action or event that was ongoing but has ended. Notice that the events described by these examples have already occurred and that, when the events occurred, they were ongoing or continuous. This tense can also be used to describe an event that was occurring in the background when a more notable event occurred. Notice that, in this case, the past continuous tense is used in describing events that were already occurring when more notable events occurred, and that all of the events occurred in the past. Eg : The plan was flying over Paris one hour ago. The woman was washing clothes when the police arrived. The future continuous tense is used to describe an action or event that will be ongoing but has not yet begun. The events described by it will be ongoing at some point in the future. Eg : The children will be playing outside tomorrow. Just as the simple present, simple past and simple future tenses have continuous tense counterparts, the perfect tenses - the present perfect, past perfect and future perfect have continuous counterparts. The difference is that non continuous tenses imply occurrence and completion while the progressive counterparts imply ongoing nature. Difference : present perfect : that eagle has flown overhead many times continuous counterpart : that eagle has been flying overhead for the last twenty minutes. Past perfect : John told us that some people had waited all day Past perfect continuous : By the time we got in line, some people had been waiting for hours. IMPORTANT : There is a nuanced difference between the two, past perfect is used to convey that one event (people had waited) occurred before the other. The continuous counterpart also says the same but in this case, it is used to indicate that the first event, people had been waiting, was ONGOING when the second (we got in line) OCCURRED. This is the key diff between non continuous and continuous for past perfect. One implies completion and the other continuation before a timestamp. When sentences involve reasons to highlight the ongoing nature of events, versions that use continuous tenses are the best. When sentences do not involve reasons to highlight the ongoing nature of events, non continuous tenses are the best. Use context clues to decide which to use. Use simple present rather than present continuous in stating that events occur, if the point of the sentence is not to express that events are ongoing at the present time. Eg of future perfect continuous : will have been growing. Eg of present perfect continuous : has been encountering

Answer 115

Whereas verb tense lets us place events in time, verb mood conveys the attitude with which a statement is made. The indicative mood is the most common verb mood and is used to state facts, assertions, and observations. The subjunctive mood is used for statements that lack certainty such as those that describe hypothetical or conditional situations, dreams, wishes, desires or doubts. It is also used in certain types of sentences that involve commands, requests or suggestions. The form of 'to be' that is used is 'were' and never 'was'. Eg : If I were a king, I would be rich. : Correct If I was a king, I would be rich : Wrong. If Terese were here, she would know how to make me mad : Correct. Trick : quickly eliminate any sentence versions that express a hypothetical situation yet don't use the subjunctive mood. Context clues that help spot subjunctive mood requirement : If, as if, were, as though etc. Another form of the subjunctive is 'were' + infinitive. There is a major diff between a hypothetical situation and a situation in which the outcome is real, yet the speaker is unsure of that outcome. Eg : If this painting was painted by Monet, then it is an amazing find => Correct, show uncertainty and not hypothetical situation. Eliminate any sentence that uses subjunctive when describing a situation that is uncertain, not hypothetical. You can use two approaches to ascertain if the mood usage is correct, use subjective logic and cues as mentioned above and use indicative verb logic AS WELL to check if indicative mood usage makes logical sense. Eg : 1) Though she often acts as if she was/were happy to stay in Uzbekistan for another year, her friends are aware that she is pushing to be transferred to Baku. Ans : Using subjunctive logic, it is hard to see if it's a hypothetical situation or a situation that lacks certainty. So, use indicative mood and check if 'was' make sense, it will mean that she was (in the past) happy to stay in Uzbekistan which is not logical. 2) Jean would win the singing competition if she enters/were to enter : were to enter is correct. The use of subjunctive in a statement beginning with 'when' does NOT make sense. Request, suggestion, demand or command words followed by the word 'that' require subjunctive mood => command subjunctive. Structure : Use the base form of the verb i.e. the infinitive but drop the to. Eg : are will be 'to be - to' = be Eg : I demand that you be respectful at dinner. (instead of you are) Eg : I insist that he respect me at dinner tonight (instead of he respects) OFC, not every sentence that involves a request, suggestion, demand or command must use the command subjunctive. But in these cases it won't follow the structure : 'request/command/demand/suggestion word' + 'that' + 'verb' Eg : Subjunctive : The coach asked that everyone wait for the announcement. Request but without subjunctive : The coach asked everyone to wait for the formal announcement. Bottom line : Eliminate any sentence version that contains a 'that' preceded by a request/command/demand/suggestion word but does not use the subjunctive mood or if it contains a subjunctive without the above structure. Incorrect examples: 1) The coach requires you be at your post from midnight to dawn : Subjunctive without 'that' 2) The coach requires that you should be at your post from midnight to dawn. extra 'should', it should only be infinitive 'to be' - 'to' 3) The coach requires that you will be at your post from midnight to dawn. extra 'will' 4) The coach requires that you are to be at your post from midnight to dawn. extra 'are to' 5) The coach requires that you are at your post from midnight to dawn.. incorrect 'are' Correct : The coach requires that you be at your post from midnight to dawn. There can be modifiers in between : Correct : The coach recommends that, to foster a healing mindset, a client act as if she were certain that her health will improve. Like the subjunctive mood, the conditional mood is used in sentences about conditions and results that are purely hypothetical. Structure : 'would'/'could' + finite verb. The subjunctive mood is USUALLY used to start off the hypothetical case 'if i WERE a king...', the conditional mood usually follows 'I WOULD move to Paris'. The subjunctive has clear use-cases : use 'were' instead of 'was' and the ' 'command word' + 'that' + 'infinitive from - to' ' structure. For the remaining, we use conditional. When describing an action or event that is possible, we do not use Subjunctive/Conditional mood. They are used in hypothetical situations. They are NOT used in sentences that could actually be true. Hence, eliminate any options that use 'will' or 'can' etc. in describing purely hypothetical actions/events. VV IMP : Not all conditional sentences must use subjunctive/conditional mood. Many sentences are conditional yet do not describe something hypothetical. Further, if they do use subjunctive/conditional mood, then they indeed talk about something hypothetical/command. Eg : Incorrect : If she wears normal clothes and sunglasses, she would go unrecognized. Correct : If she wears normal clothes and sunglasses, she will/may go unrecognized. Correct : If the CEO learns to meditate, everyone's stress levels may decrease significantly. VVVV IMPORTANT : Correct (Hypothetical) : The guests would have been sneaking down to the lower level to look if they had been aware of who was dining there. (Note that you can rearrange sentences and that the hypothetical condition i.e. if they had been aware of who was dining there does NOT use subjunctive yet demands conditional mood.) 'Had the skipper studied the chart' is the SAME as 'if the skipper had studied the chart' 'Were the company's car damaged by the sandstorm' is the same as 'if the company's car were damaged' If the condition clause (which says 'if x ....') uses subjunctive/conditional and the result clause (which says 'y....') uses indicative => Incorrect If the condition clause (which says 'if x ....') uses 'was' and the result clause (which says 'y....') uses subjunctive/conditional => Incorrect Eg : If the violinist was better rested, he would have played more energetically. 'he would have played more energetically' is conditional but 'if the violinist WAS better rested' is indicative. Correct : If the violinist had been better rested, he would have played more energetically. Incorrect : If Sandeep will be chosen as the next president, he will bring much needed fresh energy. : It doesn't make sense to say that 'he will bring...' if he 'will be chosen..'. It makes sense to say that they will bring if or when he is chosen not when he WILL BE chosen. Incorrect : If Sandeep were chosen to be the next president, he will bring much needed fresh energy. : Incorrectly uses indicative with subjunctive 'were' Incorrect : If Sandeep was chosen as the next president, he would bring much needed fresh energy. : Incorrectly uses indicative 'was' with subjunctive 'would' Correct : If Sandeep were to be chosen as the next president, he would bring much needed fresh energy. Voice : When the subject of a clause performs the action, the corresponding verb is in the active voice. When the subject of a sentence has an action being done to it, the corresponding verb is in the passive voice. Structure : a form of 'to be' + past participle of main verb. Active : A PhD candidate wrote the paper Passive : The paper was written by a PhD candidate. Most of the time, the active voice is preferred because in most cases, sentences are more concise and clear when written in active that when they are written in passive. Active : Daredevil Evel mounted a rocket bike and sought to jump across the river. Passive : A rocket bike was mounted and to jump across the river was sought by daredevil Evel. Unless there is a clear reason to use the passive voice or unless each version written in active voice contains clear mistakes, choose the active voice over the passive voice. The instances in which passive voice is preferred over active will tend to be those in which the passive voice helps draw attention to the more important noun in the sentence. When we report on findings or scientific research, we typically want to put the person or people doing the research in the background and bring the findings to the forefront. The passive voice helps do this. Eg : The results of the groundbreaking research were released to the public this morning by the officials. We often place emphasis on the thing receiving the action, rather than on the doer, when the action is the result of an event or force of nature. Eg : My car was totaled in the accident, so now I need to buy a new one. Sometimes the doer of an action is unidentified in a sentence, because the doer is not important/not known. In such situations, use passive. Also, use passive voice for general truths. Eg : Trust is earned, not bought. Steering wheel locks are used to prevent car theft In the 19th century, cocaine was used for pain relief. The passive voice is often used when talking about the ingredients or contents of something to emphasize the whole rather than the parts. Eg : Cakes are made of flour, sugar, butter and baking soda.

Question 116

VERY WONKY BUT IMPORTANT : When a connecting word or phrase such as 'once', 'as soon as', 'as long as', 'until', 'when', 'after' or 'before' is used to connect a present tense clause to a future tense clause, the present tense clause is understood to be about a condition that will exist in the future, and the future tense clause is about an event related to that condition. NOTE : the future tense clause event has to be just related to the present tense clause. It need not always precede or come after it temporally NOTE 2: ONLY USE THE ABOVE RULE WHEN YOU HAVE A CONNECTING WORD OR PHRASE AS MENTIONED ABOVE (once, as long as, after etc.) USED TO CONNECT A PRESENT TENSE CLAUSE TO A FUTURE TENSE CLAUSE. DON'T USE IT IF TWO CLAUSES ARE JOINED IN SOME OTHER WAY (eg : fanboys etc.) Eg : 1) As soon as the bride [arrives], the procession [will start]. 2) The team [will keep] working until the problem [is solved] 3) According to what the consultants said, the country's health care costs will continue to rise until the citizens start to make healthier choices NOTE 3: You can use present perfect tense as well instead of simple present.

Answer 116

The results will be available before Friday, so the team will soon be in a position to make an informed decision. The above is CORRECT since the two clauses are NOT being joined by the type of words/phrases mentioned earlier (after, as long as etc.).

Question 117

Is this statement correct? if not, what's wrong? In order to find the source of the problem, the technicians will monitor the system as the staff will use it as they normally do

Answer 117

The future tense 'will use' conveys that the technicians will monitor the system when the staff is not using it as they normally do but will later use it as they normally do. In other words, the technicians need to monitor the system while the staff use it as they normally do. They will not monitor it when the staff 'will use it as they normally do' since that means that the staff is not actually using the system then but merely deciding/stating that they 'will use' it at some point. Monitoring it while the staff is planning/stating that they 'will use it later' doesn't make sense.

Question 118

Future in the past tense : Used when sentences about past events refer to events that were in the future when the past events occurred. Form : 1) using 'would' 2) using past tense form of 'to be' in a 'to be' + 'going to' expression Eg : was going to, were going to, would arrive, would find

Answer 118

Here's the fuckup : The future in the past is used for discussing events that were 'in the future' in the past and are now in the past or in the future. BUT IN SOME CASES, you can use simple future in a statement made in the past about future events IF they were in the future in the past and ARE STILL in the future.

Question 119

Modifiers can only be parallel to other modifiers of the SAME TYPE : 1) Participial phrases/participial phrases 2) Relative clauses/relative clauses 3) Appositives/appositives 4) Prepositional phrases/ prepositional phrases

Answer 119

Compound prepositions : According to, As of, Because of, Instead of, Next to, Out of, Prior to PAY SPECIAL ATTENTION TO 'according to', you can otherwise mistake it to be a participial phrase. Eg : According to the acrobats, once the new act has been sketched out, they will learn to perform it within a weak or two. Here, 'according to acrobats' acts adverbially as a prepositional phrase. Hence, it modifies the entire sentence. Also, note the usage of present perfect with the future tense when 'once' is joining them.

Question 120

Present perfect tense : The present perfect tense is used in describing an event that began in the past and continues into the present, or one that happened in the past and continues to affect the present. Present perfect tense : has/have + past participial

Answer 120

In a sentence meant to convey simply that an action was completed in the past, the use of simple past tense makes sense. In a sentence meant to convey that an event began in the past and continues into the present or that a past event has consequences that continue to exist in the present/affects the present, the use of the present perfect tense makes sense. Eg : 1) I have lived here for five years. 'living here' started in the past and is still continuing to the present 2) She has won the gold medal in the school spelling bee twice. 'won gold twice' happened in the past but the fact that she is still the two time gold medal winner is a consequence of a past event that exists in the present. 3) He has been to Istanbul six times. The consequence of a past event i.e. that he has been there 6 times exists in the present.

Question 121

When 'since' means 'from the time of' or 'from the time when', the present perfect is strongly preferred. (Not compulsory tho as usual SMH) Eg : 1) She has worked with a vocal coach ever since her early years 2) Since the day she met Bernard, she has been happier than ever.

Answer 121

NOTE : present perfect/past perfect is not required with 'since' WHEN 'since' means 'because'. There's a subtle difference between the two sentences mentioned below : 1) Over the past year, Lydia has visited Mexico, Thailand, and Cuba 2) Last year, Lydia visited Mexico, Thailand, and Cuba 1) Indicates that 'past year' continues to today and that Lydia traveled during a period that continues to the present. 2) Indicates that Lydia visited the three countries in the preceding year which may have ended months ago i.e. the last year and Lydia's travels are over. 'Last year' is a fixed period in time, whereas 'the past year' is a continuous period that brings us to the present. Hence, we use present perfect since it brings us to the present. The same subtle difference can be seen here : 1) Over a two year period, the company saved thousands of dollars. Here 'saved' began and ended in the past 2) Over a two year period, the company has saved thousands of dollars. Here, the savings have continued up to the present moment.

Question 122

Is this statement correct? if not, what's wrong? 1) Since the early weeks of 1970, conspiracy theorists and alien enthusiasts are debating the authenticity of audio recordings released by NASA, which supposedly show that astronauts on the far side of the moon listening to CB. 2) Since the early weeks of 1970, conspiracy theorists and alien enthusiasts have debated the authenticity of audio recordings released by NASA, which supposedly show astronauts on the far side of the moon listening to CB.

Answer 122

1) Incorrect : 'are debating' does not make sense in this context since while the action debating may be going on in the present, the sentence indicates that the action began at a point in the past i.e. 'early weeks of 1970'. Hence, the present continuous which indicates that an event is ongoing in the present does not match a timeframe that began in the past. Also, the presence of 'that' renders the end of the sentence illogical since 'that' should be followed by a clause describing what the recordings show and to complete a relative clause. But here, we only have a noun 'astronaut' plus modifiers. So basically, we have 'recordings show that astronauts' which is without a verb hence incorrect. 2) Correct : 'which' modifies a NOUN PHRASE 'audio recordings released by NASA'

Question 123

Past perfect tense : 'had' + the past participial It is used in describing a past action that occurred before another past action (this one generally uses simple past). Eg : Because of the unusual heat wave, by the time the guests arrived, the hotel, which [had been] composed mostly of ice, was gone. Since the hotel would not simultaneously be composed of ice and be gone, using the simple past for both of those events does not make sense. What fits is using the past perfect 'had been' to indicate that the hotel's being composed of ice precedes the hotel's being gone. INCORRECT : When the latecomers arrived, hoping to join the excursion, they saw that the sailboat has left the dock and was halfway across the harbor. Here, using the present perfect indicates that the sailboat left the dock at some point in the past, a point not necessarily before the other events occurred, and that the sailboat's leaving is somehow connected to the present. Hence, we can incorrectly sequence the events leading to something illogical.

Answer 123

Example of a case where an opening prepositional phrase DOES NOT act as an adverbial modifier : At times graceful and melodious and, at others, powerfully rhythmic, the saxophonist's playing was effortless and seemed natural, but apparent to those with knowledge of the instrument was that he had trained for years. Here, the 'at times...rhythmic' modifies 'saxophonist's playing'. Use the 2 heuristics mentioned before to check.

Question 124

Is this statement correct? if not, what's wrong? 1) Although the mountain had been quite steep, the well trained cyclists were able to ride up it quite quickly. 2) Although the mountain was quite steep, the well trained cyclists were able to ride up it quite quickly.

Answer 124

1) Incorrect. Using 'had been' indicates that the mountain was steep before the cyclists ride up it and it stopped being steep when the cyclists ride up it. 2) Correct. Although both events were in the past, using 'although' with 'was' indicates that the mountain was steep WHILLE the cyclists rode up it.

Question 125

Past perfect tense (cont.) : A sentence must use the past perfect tense when the sentence is about an action or event [completed] by a specific date or time period [in the past]. It indicates that an event occurred before a specified date or time period in the past. There is no logic to this, just remember usage of past perfect if 'by something' is present and the action has been completed. 'By something' is simple past. REMEMBER this for the right side of this card's examples. Eg : By 1882, many people had started consuming cocaine. By late evening on election day, it had become clear that I would be the next president.

Answer 125

If a sentence about something occurring by a time in the past is NOT about an action or event completed by a time in the past, we need NOT use the past perfect tense. Eg : By the time the meeting ended, Rahul was happy with the deal. 'feeling happy' is still continuing. By the time the music started, the sun was setting. Basically what you need to do is find the action and check if it is completed or still ongoing after the time stamp. Tricky examples : 1) By the time the game was over, many of the people in attendance were falling asleep in their seats. Here the action is 'falling asleep' which doesn't end by the time the game was over, hence the sentence is correct. 2) While John found taking the test to be exciting and fun, by the time he had answered the last question, he was ready to stop and see his scores. The action is a state of existence/being 'ready to stop and see his scores' hence it is not completed by the time stamp, hence the usage as mentioned is correct. 3) By 1920, when Prohibition took effect, the American movement had been active for nearly 100 years. Action is 'being active for nearly 100 years' which has been completed by 1920. 4) By the time the last of the 1988 Yellowstone fires was extinguished, burned forests [extended/had extended] for miles The action is 'burned forests extending for miles', the extending would not stop before the last fire had been extinguished. Hence, we use 'extended'. NOTE : OBSERVE THAT WE USE 'was' and not 'were' since LAST OF is similar to ONE OF which uses singular always. Plus the last of anything is always a single thing hence, singular.

Question 126

Past perfect tense (cont.) : A sentence must use the past perfect tense when the sentence is about an action or event [completed] by a specific date or time period [in the past]. It indicates that an event occurred before a specified date or time period in the past. There is no logic to this, just remember usage of past perfect if 'by something' is present and the action has been completed. Note : 'by' is not the only trigger word for past perfect. Eg : By 1882, many people had started consuming cocaine. By late evening on election day, it had become clear that I would be the next president. In US census years from 1820 to 1850, NO ranked among the 5 most populous cities, but just two decades later, the city [had dropped] to number 6. Here, if we use simple past 'dropped', it will mean that after two decades, it suddenly dropped. However, it makes more sense that it dropped before the two decades later timestamp to end up in 6th by the time the two decades timestamp rolled in. Using simple past with 'by + xy' construct can mean that it dropped in the xy timestamp : if we say 'by 1820, I made my first million' it can mean that I made my first million in 1820. But we want to convey that I had made my first mil BEFORE 1820 rolled in, hence we use past perfect.

Answer 126

If a sentence about something occurring by a time in the past is NOT about an action or event completed by a time in the past, we need NOT use the past perfect tense. Eg : By the time the meeting ended, Rahul was happy with the deal. 'feeling happy' is still continuing. By the time the music started, the sun was setting. Basically what you need to do is find the action and check if it is completed or still ongoing after the time stamp. Tricky examples : 1) By the time the game was over, many of the people in attendance were falling asleep in their seats. Here the action is 'falling asleep' which doesn't end by the time the game was over, hence the sentence is correct. 2) While John found taking the test to be exciting and fun, by the time he had answered the last question, he was ready to stop and see his scores. The action is a state of existence/being 'ready to stop and see his scores' hence it is not completed by the time stamp, hence the usage as mentioned is correct. 3) By 1920, when Prohibition took effect, the American movement had been active for nearly 100 years. Action is 'being active for nearly 100 years' which has been completed by 1920. 4) By the time the last of the 1988 Yellowstone fires was extinguished, burned forests [extended/had extended] for miles The action is 'burned forests extending for miles', the extending would not stop before the last fire had been extinguished. Hence, we use 'extended'. NOTE : OBSERVE THAT WE USE 'was' and not 'were' since LAST OF is similar to ONE OF which uses singular always. Plus the last of anything is always a single thing hence, singular.

Question 127

Is this statement correct? if not, what's wrong? Roberto said that he likes any cat, which is black

Answer 127

Incorrect Since there isn't a particular cat that the sentence is about, it doesn't make sense to describe the cat USING A NON ESSENTIAL/NON RESTRICTIVE MODIFIER USE A RESTRICTIVE MODIFIER INSTEAD : Roberto said that he likes any cat that is black.

Question 128

There's a difference between connecting using ',and so,' and 'so that'. 'and so' establishes a cause effect relationship 'so that' means that the priori existed/was done for the purpose of the latter Eg : 1) Beethoven had already composed music for many years while becoming deaf, and so, using his imagination, he was able to continue without hearing. 2) Beethoven had already composed music for many years while becoming deaf, so that, using his imagination, he was able to continue without hearing. 1) is better. He wouldn't compose music so that he can use his imagination to continue without hearing.

Answer 128

A) Kim inspected the airplane's engine before she sat in the cockpit. VS B) Kim had inspected the airplane's engine before she sat in the cockpit. There is a subtle meaning difference between the two. When we use B) we are actually conveying that, at some previous time, Kim 'HAD INSPECTED' the engine, NOT NECESSARILY before she sat in the cockpit. In other words, in B) before she sat in the cockpit at a point in time (x) , she inspected the engine at a time stamp (y) which ended before (x) (since we're using past perfect). So, she inspected the engine in double past. In A) we mean that she inspected the engine before she sat in the cockpit.

Question 129

If a sentence makes clear the time sequence of past events without the use of the past perfect tense, the use of the past perfect tense is not necessary. HOWEVER, IT IS NOT WRONG EITHER. HENCE, if the sequence is made clear, you can use other tenses as well in place of past perfect. Eg : Usage of after, before, until, explicit mentioning of dates helps make the sequence clear.

Answer 129

Eg : 1) Freddie purchased the sailboat after he [learned] to sail. 2) Mamy was a great composer until his use of drugs caught up with him 3) I developed a method for solving the problem in 1988, but, even in 2021, few people were aware of the method's existence. However, don't apply this mechanically. Eg : Justin was immediately offered a new job upon the company's being sold, because everyone was aware that he [turned] his department around. The above is INCORRECT. Written this way, it is unclear if turning the department around preceded the offering of the job or if it happened simultaneously. The former is the intended meaning, hence, we use [had turned]. The main funda is the sequence should be clear.

Question 130

Future perfect tense : will + have + past participial of verb Conveys that an event that has not yet happened will be completed before another event that has not yet happened or before a specific time in the future. Eg : I will have worked for 35 years by the time I retire. Working for 35 years will be completed before the retirement, both of which are in the future.

Answer 130

Difference compared to simple future : 1) By Monday, he will have a week to complete the assignment Here, when Monday comes, the person will have a week to complete the assignment. Neither of the two events have occurred yet. 2) By Monday, he will have had a week to complete the assignment. Here, by a future Monday, he will have had a week to complete the assignment i.e. the Monday will mark the end of a week's time given to him. Here both are in the future but a week will be completed before the future Monday.

Question 131

Is this statement correct? if not, what's wrong? The company will have cornered the market by the time the patents related to the product will expire.

Answer 131

Incorrect. 'the patents related to the product will expire' is a tautology hence is true always (since it's inevitable that the patents will expire hence we can say that anytime, it's like saying 'i will grow older'), even now. hence, the sentence incorrectly says that the company 'will have' cornered the market now. Further since it is true always, it can also refer to a range of time without specifying any particular timestamp.

Question 132

Continuous tense : Used to bring attention to the temporarily ongoing nature of an action. Present continuous : Used to describe events that are temporarily ongoing in the present. Form : present tense form of 'to be' + present participial of the base verb Eg : are playing, is running Past continuous : Used to describe an action or event that was ongoing but has ended. Eg : was washing, were playing. It can also be used to describe an event that was occurring in the background when a more notable event occurred. Eg : The woman was washing clothes when the police arrived.

Answer 132

Future continuous : Used to describe an action or event that will be ongoing, but has not yet begun. Eg : will be playing etc. Use context clues to pick between present, pas and future continuous tenses.

Question 133

Perfect continuous tenses : The continuous counterparts of present, past and future perfect tenses. 1) While the perfect tenses convey that an event was completed by the time another event occurred, perfect continuous conveys that an event started BEFORE and was ongoing by the time another event occurred. 2) perfect tenses do not show the ongoing nature of the double past event. they instead convey that it was one and done, perfect continuous show the ongoing nature.

Answer 133

Present perfect vs present perfect continuous : 1) The eagle had flown overhead many times. 2) That eagle has been flying overhead for the last twenty minutes. 1) conveys that over a period of time from the past to the present, the eagle has flown overhead multiple times. 2) conveys that from 20 minutes ago to now, the eagle HAS BEEN FLYING continuously. Past perfect vs past perfect continuous : 1) John told us that some people had waited all day. 2) By the time we got in line, some people had been waiting for hours. 1) Conveys that people had waited before the second event 'John told us' occurred. 2) Conveys that the people had been waiting on an ongoing basis when the second event 'we got in line' occurred. Future perfect vs future perfect continuous : 1) When the runners complete the race, they will have run over 40 kilometers. 2) When the runners approach the finish line, they will have been running for hours 1) Conveys that at a point in time in the future, the runners will have completed a certain action, running over 40 kms. 2) Conveys that at a point in the future, the runners will have been engaging in an action, running, on a continuous basis for hours.

Question 134

We use simple present when stating a fact/routine event. If the point is to show that the events are ongoing at the present time, we use present continuous. Eg : Jin plays tennis vs Jin is playing tennis The first merely says that, in general, Jin plays tennis. The second indicates that Jin is actually playing tennis at this time

Answer 134

Since moving to NYC, the singer (has attended/has been attending) the opera a few times. Here, the singer's attending the opera has not been continuous but rather has occurred on a few discrete occasions. Hence, we use present perfect and not the continuous variant. The filming was delayed because the crew saw that some bears (were playing/played) in the pond and waited until the bears left. What makes sense is not that the crew saw the bears PLAYED in the pond, but were not playing (on an ongoing basis) in the pond when the crew arrived, but, rather that the bears were playing (ongoing) when the crew arrived.

Question 135

The indicative mood is the most common verb mood and is used to state facts, assertions, and observations. Eg : 1) The flowers smell good. 2) Tomorrow, we will go to the beach. 3) It may be necessary to change the design of the outer shell.

Answer 135

The imperative mood is used in giving commands and supplying directions. Eg : 1) Take a bath 2) Be careful when handling poison 3) Please go to the hall and inform the avenger right away.

Question 136

Is this statement correct? if not, what's wrong? In the teeth of an Aztec man who died in one of the two waves of disease [a) that were occurring/ b) then occurring/ c) which occurred] in 1545 and 1576 was bacterial DNA that matched that of salmonella

Answer 136

c) is correct a) is incorrect because 'of disease' is a prep phrase. So, 'that WERE occurring' would modify 'waves'. So, it incorrectly says that 2 waves were occurring simultaneously in 1545 and 1576 b) Same as a) c) Correct, conveys that two waves occurred during 2 years.

Question 137

What does the opening modifier modify? During the 1800s, although passenger pigeons were travelling in flocks numbering in the millions, by around the first of September, 1914, when the last of them died, passenger pigeons were becoming completely extinct.

Answer 137

IMPORTANT During the 1800s modifies 'passenger pigeons' from 'PASSENGER PIGEONS WERE BECOMING COMPLETELY EXTINCT' not 'ALTHOUGH PASSENGER PIGEONS' since the latter is not a noun structure. So, since we have an opening modifier, it modifies the noun structure that comes after which is 'passenger pigeons'. However, if we have a participle phrase in between or the end, it can modify any clause (dependent/relative/independent)

Question 138

Subjunctive mood : This is used for statements that lack certainty, such as those that describe hypothetical or conditional situations, dreams, wishes, desires, or doubts. It is also used in certain types of sentences that involve commands, requests, or suggestions. Whereas the indicative mood resides in the concrete world of facts and observations, the subjunctive mood is used in expressing imaginary or hypothetical scenarios.

Answer 138

We need to use context clues to understand whether it is a hypothetical or a real life event happening. Some context clues : 'If' clauses talking about the hypothetical, talking about hypothetical events [end of the world, being a monster etc.], wishing, hoping, wondering etc. Eg : If I 'were' a millionaire, I would buy my dream house [We use 'were' which is the past subjunctive form instead of 'was' because here, the context clue 'I would buy' and the general sense that the person is not a millionaire tells us that it is hypothetical] She looked at me as though I 'were' a monster. [being a monster is obviously hypothetical] I wish that I 'were' done with my GMAT prep. [wishing for something is a trigger for subjunctive] If he 'were' an experienced pilot, he would be aware that landing in such conditions is challenging. ['he would' and indication that he's not a experienced pilot are triggers for subjunctive]

Question 139

Another form of subjunctive is formed via the combination of 'were' + infinitive : If Sheri were to arrive early, we would be ruined. ['would' and 'were' + infinitive are triggers] Bankruptcy could be avoided if the city were to manage its finances better ['could' + 'were' + infinitive are triggers]

Answer 139

Note : not every clause that uses 'if', 'as if', or 'as though' demands the use of subjunctive mood. The rabbit was acting as if it was hungry She spoke as though she was confident that she would succeed If this painting was painted by Pollock, then it is an amazing find. If our representative 'was' there that day, he can report what occurred. The above sentences indicate the speaker DOESN'T KNOW WHAT THE REALITY IS (very good check, this is not about hypothetical situations hence use indicative). He doesn't know if the rabbit is hungry, or if she was confident or not, or if the painting is by Pollock or not or if the representative was there or not. Further, look at the context clues 'was acting', 'spoke', 'is an amazing find', 'can report' ALSO, THESE SENTENCES TALK ABOUT REAL HAPPENINGS AND NOT IMAGINARY/HYPOTHETICAL, THIS IS V IMPORTANT Hence, we use indicative and NOT subjunctive.

Question 140

If subjunctive forms look like indicative forms, then no worries. 1) Though she often acts as if she [was/were] happy to stay in Uzbekistan for another year, her friends are aware that, actually, she is pushing to be transferred. 2) Clearly, these people will become significantly healthier if the food that they eat going forward [is/were] of higher quality than the food that they have been eating. 3) These plants could conceivably produce around 200 tomatoes per plant, but they will do so only if they [are/were] located in a sunny area and provided with plenty of water

Answer 140

1) The writer is NOT unsure of her emotional state, plus we don't want to convey that she was happy to stay for another year in the past, it's about her being happy to stay for another year in a hypothetical sense. Hence, use 'were' 2) There is nothing hypothetical here. The writer knows that they will become healthier if food better. Plus the food being better is a real situation, not hypothetical. 'is' 3) The writer is unsure if they're located in a sunny area or not. And we're talking about real situations. So, 'are'

Question 141

FANBOYS must have a parallel structure around them. For can act as a preposition as well, in which case, it need not have parallel structure around it. The remaining FANBOYS do not have this issue

Answer 141

When a list is introduced, each of the elements in the list must work [logically] with the part of the sentence that introduces the list. Stuff like 'explain why you called', 'have a positive outlook', 'effectively address situations' are verb phrases. 'your name' or 'your reason for calling' are noun phrases.

Question 142

Is this statement correct? if not, what's wrong? At the expo, the participants discussed how to sketch, paint on canvas, and using texture to stimulate the events.

Answer 142

Correct, The sticking point is 'paint on canvas', quickly replace with rough synonyms to get something like 'ink on paper' and realize that people can indeed discuss it.

Question 143

VVVVV IMPORTANT : Is this statement correct? if not, what's wrong? The stress response, involves muscles that tense, involves extra sugar that is produced by the liver, going into the bloodstream, and hormones that are released, increasing heart and breathing rates.

Answer 143

Incorrect. 'going into the bloodstream' will modify the preceding clause which is 'that is produced by the liver' with 'that' referring to 'extra sugar'. NOTE THAT IT DOES NOT NEED TO MODIFY AN INDEPENDENT CLAUSE. ANY CLAUSE WORKS. Hence, both the possible meanings are wrong : by going into the bloodstream, extra sugar is produced by the liver or by being produced, extra sugar goes into the bloodstream. same issue with 'increasing heart and breathing rates'

Question 144

A repeating element that is essential to what introduces the list must either appear once before the first term in the list or appear in every one of the list items. Eg : The members of the committee decided to reduce marketing expenditure, increase headcount, and change the schedule. Here 'to' is essential in connecting decided to the list items hence it should be either repeated only once at the start of the list or before every item like this : Eg : The members of the committee decided to reduce marketing expenditure, to increase headcount, and to change the schedule.

Answer 144

A repeating element that is NOT essential to what introduces a list does NOT have to follow these rules. Eg : The groom was congratulated by his friends, his parents, and guests he was meeting for the first time. Here 'his' is not essential, hence it need not appear 'guests'. However, 'by' is essential.

Question 145

Is this statement correct? if not, what's wrong? TRICKYYYY 1) New teachers should expect that students will challenge their authority, that materials will be outdated or unavailable, since they will receive scant support from the administration.

Answer 145

'since they will...' is a modifying clause, rather than a list item. Hence, the incorrect part here is that two clauses 'that students will challenge their authority' and 'that materials will be outdated or unavailable' are run on (no coordinating conjunction)

Question 146

Sometimes, in order for a sentence including a list to clearly convey a logical meaning, it's necessary to repeat a preposition. ``` Eg : 1) Breck said [that] John will be the new class president and [that] Peter will be the new secretary. ``` 2) The grant supports the man's research into theories of the formation of the canyon by flowing water and the development of the mountains. 3) The results of the study serve to call into question the theory that the gene causes the disease by showing that some people carry the gene, and, nevertheless, they are not experiencing the disease.

Answer 146

In 1), if we had skipped the SECOND 'that' then it would convey that Breck only said that John will be the new class president. He did not say anything about Peter. The statement about Peter is a fact. Including the second 'that' conveys that both things were said by Breck. 2) The sentence in it's current state is unclear since it can be understood in the following ways : a) The grant supports the man's research and the development of mountains. b) The canyon has been formed by flowing water and the development of mountains. etc. Hence, we need to repeat 'of' before 'the development' to indicate parallelism 3) 'that' is not repeated before 'they are' hence this version indicates that only the first statement that follows 'by showing' expresses something that is shown by the results of the study. So, this version conveys the illogical meaning that the results of the study serve to call into question the theory that the gene causes the disease by showing that some people carry the gene. Further, the part after 'nevertheless' doesn't use a 'that' hence it is not connected to 'by showing' and therefore it is not part of what the results of the study show. it's just a separate additional fact. The 'and' might be just separating two independent clauses without a repeated 'that'

Question 147

In a nested list, the elements of the outer list must work logically with whatever introduces them. Similarly, the elements of the nested list must work logically with whatever introduces them. Eg : Lost in a forest in Hawaii, Amanda Eller survived by eating fruit from trees and drinking water from a waterfall and, after seventeen days, was found by a search team.

Answer 147

The sentence contains an outer list and a nested list. The outer list : Amanda Eller : survived ..... was found .... The nested list is : survived by : eating fruit from trees drinking water from a.. Note that the placement of the 'and's is a little odd but it is fine since there are no clauses being connected by them, they are NOT RUN ON/MISSING OXFORD COMMA. Similar example : YNP, widely held to be the first national park in the world, was established in 1872 by the United States Congress and is known for its wildlife and its many geysers and hot springs. Here 'geysers and hot springs' is treated as one item so it's connected to 'wildlife' with a simple comma.

Question 148

Is this statement correct? if not, what's wrong? As malls lose tenants large and small and revenue, with the ongoing decline of the brick and mortar retail sector, and become empty and decrepit, they often become blights on communities they once energized.

Answer 148

Correct. No run on 'and' is present.

Question 149

IMPORTANT AND TRICKY: The presence of commas is very helpful in detecting parallelism. Eg : While industry insiders insist that fish farming reduces pressure on wild fish stocks, outside experts have suggested that actually the farms harm more than they help, by catalyzing the spread of diseases [and] that of parasites such as sea lice [and] causing astronomical increases in the levels of pollution in wild ecosystems.

Answer 149

Note that there is no oxford comma before both the 'and's, which means that it is just connecting two items and not more than 2. Hence you know that something has to be parallel to 'causing ...' for the second 'and' which is 'catalyzing'. Similarly something has to be parallel to 'that of parasites...' which is 'the spread of diseases'. Note : 'that' refers to 'the spread' Had it been an oxford comma, you would look for 3 or more parallel structures.

Question 150

Which of the following is correct? 1) Not only are there already many different genres of music 2) Not only are many different genres of music already there

Answer 150

1) Uses expletive 'there' correctly . 2) Does not use an expletive there, instead it says that the different genres of music are already 'there' where 'there' refers to some unknown place.

Question 151

Whatever precedes the first part of a 'not only...but also' correlative structure is understood to carry over to, BUT IS NOT EXPLICITLY WRITTEN IN, the second part of the correlative structure.

Answer 151

Eg : Jim ran not only the marathon but also the sprint. 'Jim ran' precedes 'not only' hence it is UNDERSTOOD to carry over to both the parts after 'not only' and 'but also'. Correct : Not only Jim ran the marathon but also Jim ran the sprint. (PAY ATTENTION to how it's being carried over) HOWEVER, you can't repeat it once out of the two times is carries over. This is similar to other parallel structures we studies till now. Eg : Jim ran not only the marathon but also Jim ran the sprint. Now, applying the tenet that whatever precedes 'not only' carries over, we get : Not only Jim ran the marathon but also JIM RAN Jim ran the sprint. This duplication renders the statement incorrect.

Question 152

In the case of 'not only...but also', splitting 'but also' by putting something between the two TENDS to result in the creation of illogical sentences. Eg : The chef not only prepares dinner but bakes also pastries. The above example starts off saying that the chef prepares dinners and jumps to the idea that the chef bakes also pastries without having said that the chef bakes anything else. The shop not only repairs most types of motor vehicles but details also automobiles. The sentence seems to be conveying that the shop 'details also automobiles' as if it's saying that the shop details automobiles in addition to detailing something else, but does not mention something else that the shop details.

Answer 152

Tricky stuff : Incorrect : Not only does he neglect his studies but also regularly fails to turn in his homework. 1st part : 'does he neglect his studies' has both a subject (he) and a verb (does neglect) 2nd part : 'regularly fails to turn in his homework' has a verb (fails) but no subject noun/pronoun. Hence, it is incorrect. Correct : Not only is she the class president, but also she served as captain of the debate team for the past two years. Both parts have a subject and a finite verb. Rearrange it if you're having trouble seeing it : 'she is the class president' and 'she served ...' Incorrect : Not only are cycling lessons popular in NYC, but also quickly gaining attention in LA. Second part has no subject. Correct : Not only are cycling lessons popular in NYC, but also they are quickly gaining .... Second part has subject 'they' (pronouns are also fine.)

Question 153

'by' can act both as a preposition and adverb. But a phrase beginning with 'by' will always be a prepositional phrase.

Answer 153

In the case of 'not only....but....as well', what follows 'not only' and what is between 'but' and 'as well' MUST WORK LOGICALLY with what precedes the correlative structure.

Question 154

Either or : Each day, Sam is charged with either mopping the floors or taking out the trash. As with 'not only...but also', whatever precedes 'either' carries over to both what comes after 'either' and after 'or' : Sam is charged with mopping the floor, Sam is charged with taking out the trash Neither nor : The Embassy in LA is neither sufficient with its visa processing system nor organized with its customer communications. Whatever precedes 'neither' carries over to both was comes after 'neither' and after 'nor'

Answer 154

Rather...than : Marshall joked that he would rather get a root canal than eat his wife's cooking. Whatever precedes 'rather' carries over to what comes after 'rather' and after 'than'. Not...but : It was not his money that impressed her but that he was generous with everyone he encountered. Whatever precedes 'not' carries over to what comes after 'not' and after 'but'. It was his money that impressed her (correct) It was that he was generous with everyone he encountered (correct) Both...and : Peter cleaned his apartment both for his girlfriend's comfort and for his own safety. Whatever precedes 'both' carries over to what comes after 'both' and after 'and'.

Question 155

Is this statement correct? if not, what's wrong? 1) Neither the novels by Jane Austen nor those by Ernest Hemingway interested him. 2) Neither the novels by Jane Austen nor Ernest Hemingway interested him.

Answer 155

1) Correct 'those' refers to 'the novels' hence both the parts after 'neither' and 'nor' are parallel with a 'subject + preposition' structure which is in line with 'interested him' . NOTE : The above sentence highlights that a pronoun can be used without breaking parallelism as long as its antecedent is clear and present. 2) Correct (VERY IMPORTANT) Since NO COMPARISON IS BEING MADE HERE, we need not compare novels to novels. We can say 'the novels by Jane Austen interested him' and 'Ernest Hemingway interested him'

Question 156

Each of the following structures demand parallelism : 1) X rather than Y 2) mistake X for Y 3) prefer X to Y 4) range from X to Y (ranging from X to Y) 5) more X than Y (in certain cases if there needs to be parallelism/comparison) 6) from X to Y 7) X or Y, X but Y (all FANBOYS basically) 8) Between X and Y (X and Y need to be nouns or noun like (noun clause/phrase)) it can also be used for ranges : https://gmatclub.com/forum/foraging-at-all-times-of-the-day-and-night-but-interspersing-their-220378.html 9)Consider X Y 10) In contrast to X, Y 11) Distinguish X from Y 12) Estimate X to be Y 13) View X as Y

Answer 156

Incorrect : The team traveled by rail rather than flying to the tournament. 'traveled by rail' IS NOT parallel to 'flying to the tournament' TRICKY : Correct : After I drank the potion, I was more beast than man. Here, I need comparison here BETWEEN X AND Y . Hence 'beast' needs to be parallel to 'man' Correct : Raul was more skilled than Alonso Here I do not need to compare X and Y (as in more X than Y) hence I don't need X and Y to be parallel.

Question 157

Is this statement correct? if not, what's wrong? Almost universally acknowledged is that the most successful teachers are those who, rather than just convey the basic facts and figures to their students, inspire them to think on their own.

Answer 157

Correct. It need not always be 'X rather than Y', it can be 'rather than X, Y' There can also be something between X and Y : Rather than X, the most successful teachers Y

Question 158

When items appear in a series, verb voices can change from active to passive without violating parallelism, as long as each element in the list works logically with the essential element or elements that introduce the list.

Answer 158

GET USED to applying parallelism to non 'and' FANBOYS as well. Eg : Raccoons now inhabit but are not native to Asian forests. 'but' is a parallelism marker. Raccoons now inhabit Asian forests Raccoons are not native to Asian forests.

Question 159

Is this statement correct? if not, what's wrong? Almost universally acknowledged is that fact that the teachers who are the most successful don't simply convey the basic facts and figures to their students, but can inspire them also to think on their own.

Answer 159

By using 'can inspire them' between 'but' and 'also', the sentence conveys that the most successful teachers can inspire students 'also' to think on their own without mentioned anything else that the teachers inspire the students to do. NOTE : THIS IS NOT WRONG DUE TO COMMA + FANBOYS PLACEMENT. ONLY IF TWO 'INDEPENDANT' CLAUSES ARE NOT CONNECTED BY COMMAS + FANBOYS IS THE STATEMENT WRONG. USING COMMMA + FANBOYS WITHOUT INDEPENDANT CLAUSES ON BOTH SIDES NEED NOT BE INCORRECT. DON'T ELIMINATE CHOICES ON GMAT JUST BECAUSE IT SEEEMS TO INCLUDE AN UNNEEDED COMMA. EMPHASIS ON UNNEEDED

Question 160

Verbs that are in different tenses can be parallel.

Answer 160

A noun clause CANNOT be parallel to an independent clause.

Question 161

When two choices are both basically correct, choose the one with the more parallel structure. 1) AZ, a frog species found in the rainforest and that resembles a poison dart frog, is not actually poisonous. 2) AZ, a frog species found in the rainforest and resembling a poison dart frog, is not actually poisonous. 2) is more parallel since it uses participial phrases throughout instead of a participial phrase and relative clause as in 1) Both are basically correct but 2 is preferable.

Answer 161

GMAT does not PREFER using gerunds and infinitives parallelly.

Question 162

Ambiguity is also an issue when it comes to parallelism. If possible, pick the non ambiguous sentence. Ambiguous parallelism : The doctor analyzed her patients' vital signs with a new device that simplified the process and logged the results in each patients' electronic medical records. Y is 'logged the results...' X can be either 'analyzed...process' or 'simplified....process'

Answer 162

Be very cognizant of the meaning. Every night after the lights go out, the campers attempt to sneak out of their bunks and steal candy from the kitchen. Now, Y is 'steal candy from the kitchen' X can be either 'attempt to ...bunks' or 'sneak ... bunks' The latter is correct. The former says that they attempt to sneak out of their bunks so they might not succeed. But at the same time, it says that they certainly steal candy. So, it incorrectly states that even when they fail to sneak out of their bunks, they end up successfully stealing candy. The former says that they attempt to both get out of the bunks and steal candy. This is logical.

Question 163

'Neither X or Y' is unidiomatic and wrong. So is 'between X to Y'. 'known by' should be followed by a name that someone or something is known by. Usage of anything else is incorrect.

Answer 163

The plethora of new products coming from tech companies, particularly in the area of communication, [is/are] transforming... Collective nouns continue to haunt :P Here it is not the plethora that is transforming. The individual products are transforming. Hence, we need to split it and use PLURAL (ARE).

Question 164

Is this statement correct? if not, what's wrong? The researchers determined which reactant had caused the explosion and to use another one next time.

Answer 164

While this statement does have its parallelism off, there is a more nuanced error. 'determined' in 'determined which reactant' means 'established', while 'determined' in 'determined to use' means 'decided'. So, the word 'determined' which is being used once is being used to express two different things which is incorrect usage.

Question 165

Is this statement correct? if not, what's wrong? While the main threat to the camel is poaching, farming and industry are encroaching on the camel's habitat, growing as a threat to the species' survival.

Answer 165

'growing as a threat' is incorrect usage. It does not logically connect 'growing' with being a threat. It says that farming and industry are growing as if growing and being a threat are not directly connected. Eg : Tom is a growing boy vs Tom is growing as a boy. The former connects that he is a boy and he is growing . 'as a boy' is a prepositional phrase which is acting adverbially hence modifies 'is growing' hence it modifies 'is growing' and doesn't say that Tom is a boy (since it doesn't modify Tom).

Question 166

Comparison signal words : 1) In the same way 2) than 3) at the same rate 4) similar to 5) correspondingly 6) much as 7) so 8) whereas 9) while 10) nevertheless 11) nontheless 12) by the same token 13) similarly 14) just as 15) likewise 16) in similar fashion 17) as...as

Answer 166

Incorrect : The cost of summer camp is much higher than summer school. The cost of summer camp can't be compared to a school (summer school) Correct : The cost of summer camp is much higher than summer SCHOOL'S OR The cost of summer camp is much higher THAN THAT of summer school OR The cost of summer camp is much higher than summer school's cost. Incorrect : The colors used in Picasso's lithographs are quite similar to those by Van Gogh. Are certain colors 'by Van Gogh'? No. So we can't compare colors used in Picasso... to 'those BY Van Gogh' Incorrect : Therapeutic treatment with Antibiotic A produced fewer secondary sinus infections than antibiotic B. Cannot compare 'therapeutic treatment with antibiotic A' with just 'antibiotic B'. You can compare treatment to treatment but not 'treatment with A' to 'just B' Incorrect :Often, the vegetables from the market are fresher than when we get vegetables from the store. Cannot compare 'the vegetables...' to 'when we...' (time stamp) Incorrect : Bridges built recently are more sophisticated than how they were built before the 20th century. Cannot compare 'bridges built recently' to 'how...' Incorrect : Unlike the piano compositions of many of his contemporaries, Johan created piano compositions specifically for use in films. Incorrect : In comparison with the president's views, the vice president is conservative. Incorrect : Last year, the cost of an MBA was greater than a house. You cannot compare the 'cost of an MBA' to a 'house'. Incorrect : The maximum acceleration of the F-22 is much greater than the F-16. Cannot compare 'max acceleration of F-22' with just 'F-16' Incorrect : Like many CEOs, Jack's budget appeared well reasoned. Cannot compare 'CEOs' to 'Jack's budget'

Question 167

Comparing singular and plural entities with each other is fine as long as doing so results in a logical comparison.

Answer 167

Incorrect : The gardens in the city are as prolific as in the suburbs. CANNOT COMPARE 'GARDENS IN THE CITY' TO A LOCATION 'IN THE SUBURBS'

Question 168

Is this statement correct? if not, what's wrong? With the average yearly temperature increasing in the state, meteorologists predict that severe forest fires will damage this year a greater number of California's state parks than such fires damaged last year.

Answer 168

Correct. | Use ellipsis to understand.

Question 169

Comparing something with itself is incorrect comparison. Incorrect : Julie is more skilled at singing than any singer I've encountered. 'any singer I've encountered' includes Julie hence Julie is being compared to herself and it is said that she is better than herself which is incorrect. Correct : Julie is more skilled at singing than any [other] singer I've encountered. Correct : Julie is more skilled at singing than anyone else I have encountered.

Answer 169

Incorrect : The bears that live in Cali survive longer than they do in Texas. NOTE : here 'that live in Cali' is restrictively modifying 'bears' so 'they' cannot refer to 'bears' alone, it has to refer to 'bears that live in Cali'. Hence, we get the illogical : The bears that live in Cali survive longer than bears that live in Cali do in Texas. What are the bears that live in Cali doing in Texas? Correct : The bears that live in Cali survive longer than THOSE that live in Texas. Using the demonstrative 'those' works great since it is used for comparison primarily to point to a different population. Correct : The bears that live in Cali survive longer than the bears that live in Texas do. Correct : (Remove the restrictive modifier) Bears survive longer in Cali than they do in Texas

Question 170

``` Any restrictive modifier can possibly lead to incorrect comparison. We already saw this happening with 'that live in Cali...' Another example : The kids in Ms. Marple's class are much better behaved than they are in Mr. Gupta's class. 'in Ms. Marple's class' restrictively modifies 'the kids' hence 'they' would refer to 'kids in Ms. Marple's class' and not 'kids'. Leading to : The kids in Ms. Marple's class are much better behaved than the kids in Ms. Marple's class are in Mr. Gupta's class. How can the kids that are 'in Ms. Marple's class' be in 'Mr. Gupta's class' AT THE SAME TIME. ```

Answer 170

Correct : The kids in Ms. Marple's class are much better behaved than those in Mr. Gupta's class. Correct : The kids in Ms. Marple's class are much better behaved than the kids in Mr. Gupta's class. The incorrectness in these questions stems from the fact that something can't be in two states at the same time. Here, the students in a certain class can't be in two classes at the same time. In a similar vein : Toothpastes containing sodium, a salt that acts as an emulsifier, may be more irritating that they are without this common ingredient. After replacement : Toothpastes containing sodium, a salt that acts as an emulsifier, may be more irritating that toothpastes containing sodium are without this common ingredient. Toothpaste can either contain sodium or not. It can't simultaneously be 'are without sodium' are 'containing sodium'

Question 171

Is this statement correct? if not, what's wrong? IMPORTANT Although a hardy houseplant, aloe vera plants that are in the wild grow faster than those indoors.

Answer 171

IMPORTANT Incorrect. 'although a hardy houseplant' would modify 'aloe vera plants that are in the wild' since 'that are in the wild' is a restrictive modifier. So, it does not make sense to say that something that is in the wild is a houseplant. Further, a houseplant (singular) cannot be aloe vera plantS (plural)

Question 172

Logical comparisons can be created via the substitution of 'does' or 'do' for repeated present tense action verbs or verb phrases and 'did' for repeated past tense action verb or verb phrases. Verbs of multiple tenses can appear in comparisons as long as the resulting comparison makes sense.

Answer 172

Incorrect : Elisa is just as patient with the students as Coleen does. Because it compares how Elisa is with what Coleen does. Incorrect : Katina has less experience in managing projects than Sondra has been. Incorrect : Archeologists using modern equipment are better able to find buried historical sites than archeologists could in the past. Incorrectly compares how able model archeologists are with 'archaeologists could'. We need to use 'were' instead of 'could'

Question 173

Is this statement correct? if not, what's wrong? 1) A bright light flashing in the darkness is more likely to attract the attention of passing drivers than a similarly bright light shining steadily would. 2) While traveling around the world, the travelers found that the trains in Europe were more comfortable and in better condition than had been trains on which they had ridden on other continents.

Answer 173

1) Incorrect Compares 'a bright light flashing...is more likely' to 'bright light shining...WOULD'. To see the fallacy more clearly, the 'bright light shining steadily would more likely to attract the attention...' 2) Correct. ('trains in Europe were' is being compared to 'trains had been')

Question 174

Words that would otherwise be repeated in a sentence that expresses a comparison can be omitted as long as the sentence effectively expresses its meaning without the omitted words. - Ellipsis Ellipsis need not always occur at the end of the sentence, it can occur anywhere. The key tenet is it should not lead to ambiguity. Eg : 1) She is quoted in the news less often than her sister : Correct. Version without ellipsis : She [is quoted in the news] less often than her sister [is quoted in the news]. VERY IMPORTANT : 2) Surprisingly, research has shown that highly plugged-in teens are just as likely to socialize in person as less plugged-in teens. Version without ellipsis : Surprisingly, research has shown that highly plugged-in teens [are just as likely to socialize in person] as less plugged-in teens [are to socialize in person]. The key of using ellipsis is that it should NOT lead to ambiguity. Don't worry too much about detecting when ellipsis is fine and when it is not. Just know that something like this exists and don't straight up eliminate an option because it contains ellipsis which you're mistaking for incompleteness. VERY IMPORTANT QUESTION : Inuits of the Bering Sea were [in isolation from contact with Europeans longer than] Aleuts or Inuits of the North Pacific and northern Alaska. 1) isolated from contact with Europeans longer than 2) isolated from contact with Europeans longer than were You see that both 1 and 2 use ellipsis. But ellipsis usage in 1 leads to AMBIGUITY as in are we comparing 'Inuits of the Bering Sea were in isolation... longer than Aleuts or Inuits... Alaska' i.e. Inuits were isolated from both Europeans and Aleuts but they were isolated from Europeans for longer or are we comparing 'Inuits of the Bering Sea were in isolation longer than Aleuts or Inuits.... WERE' i.e. both Inuits and Aleuts were isolated from the Europeans but Inuits were isolated for longer Usage of 'were' in 2 makes it clear and the ellipsis usage makes it concise. IMPORTANT : In ellipsis, you can pick up words without needing to pick up their restrictive modifier Eg : Their bone structure fairly rigid, the wings of birds are less flexible than bats'. Without ellipsis, it would be 'bats' wings' and NOT 'bats' wings of birds'

Answer 174

Has/Have can ONLY show possession when it is the main verb, for example, I have a dog. I have fed the dog. (this sentence DOES NOT use have as possession) Thus, hence and therefore are ADVERBS not conjunctions. => 'thus making...' is a participial phrase. Ambiguity in comparisons is a deal breaker and incorrect. Eg : IMPORTANT : Alex is much nicer to me than Alfredo. There are two possible ways to interpret this : 1) Alex is nice to me and Alfredo. But among the two (ME AND ALFREDO), he is nicer to me. 2) Both Alex and Alfredo are nice to me. But among the two (ALEX AND ALFREDO), Alex is nicer. Since both 1 and 2 are likely, the statement is ambiguous and hence incorrect. Further, it can be construed as incorrect ellipsis usage. To mean 1), it should be : Alex is much nicer to me that TO Alfredo. 2) Alex is much nice to me than Alfredo is. Similar examples : Some people say that Nice resembles Paris more than Cannes.

Question 175

Incomplete comparisons are incorrect on the GMAT. Eg : This tent is just as waterproof. Eg : The astronomers had expected to easily find Alpha Centauri in the night, but, because it is not very different, they didn't find it until they used a star chart. 'Not very different' from what? The researchers believed that they had finally developed a method to twerk but the method turned out not to be as effective. 'as effective' as what? Even though his camera uses old technology, Grep, feeling that is works better, continues to use it. 'works better' than what?

Answer 175

Some people still believe that the buildings in NYC are taller than in any other part of the world. 'taller than what in any other part of the world'? You can't claim that 'the buildings' are dropped as ellipsis. It doesn't work that way, if there was ellipsis 'the buildings in NYC' would be dropped since we have a restrictive modifier. Usage of 'the buildings in NYC' would render the sentence illogical.

Question 176

More involved examples of incomplete comparisons : Incorrect : When it is compared with eating butter, eating olive oil is healthier. The sentence incorrectly states that 'only when compared to eating butter', olive oil is healthier 'than something' and that 'something' is not mentioned here. Incorrect : Although tigers can run fast, when compared with tigers, cheetahs run much faster. Cheetahs run much faster than what? Incorrect : The bones of birds, if compared with those of other animals, are much different. 'much different' than what

Answer 176

However, not all usages of 'when' and 'if' as mentioned before are incorrect. Correct : The Torre towers over buildings around it, but when the Torre is compared to the Freedom tower, the Torre may seem rather small. The Torre may seem rather small does not have a comparison in it. Further, saying that it is small only when compared to Freedom tower also makes sense. Incorrect :Although Bison can be quite aggressive, when they are compared to Cape Buffalo, bison can be friendlier. 'friendlier' than what? Correct : Although Bison can be quite aggressive, when they are compared to Cape Buffalo, bison can seem friendly. Small and friendly are not comparative forms. Smaller and friendlier are which leads to the incorrect comparison examples above.

Question 177

The word 'like' is strictly a comparison word and CANNOT be used to introduce examples. To introduce examples, we can use 'such as' or 'including'. Incorrect : When travelling through the Everglades, one may see many animals, like snakes, mammals, and alligators. This illogically says that you can see many animals that are similar to snakes, mammals and alligators but not the same as snakes, mammals and alligators. Correct : When travelling through the Everglades, one may see many animals, (such as)/(including) snakes, mammals, and alligators.

Answer 177

'like' is used to compare two things which are similar yet not the same i.e. 'like' is used when the reference noun is not in the set to which the other nouns belong. 'such as' or 'including' is used to introduce a set of examples THAT ARE IN THE SET mentioned before the list of examples. Correct : Wolves are like dogs. Dogs not in the same set as Wolves. Correct : When travelling through the Everglades, one may see many animals, such as snakes, mammals, and alligators. 'snakes, mammals and alligators' are in the same set as animals.

Question 178

When 'such as'/including' is used to introduce a list, it is often preceded by a comma and in such cases, the final examples should be FOLLOWED by a comma. Correct : The boy received for his birthday many toys, such as action figures, a soccer ball, and a board game, and his favorite among them was a tricky puzzle.

Answer 178

Further, there can be a word between 'such' and 'as' which is permissible. Correct : The boy received for his birthday such toys as action figures, a soccer ball, and a board game, and his favorite among them was a tricky puzzle. There is also a subtle difference in the usage of 'such as' and 'including'. So, be cognizant of the fact that they are not exactly equivalent. 'Including' by nature 'includes' the entity. Eg : I was hoping that someone, such as the teenagers whom I saw surfing, would explain how to love. Is NOT the same as : I was hoping that someone, including the teenagers whom I saw surfing, would explain how to love. The former is correct.

Question 179

Is this statement correct? if not, what's wrong? Gluten can disrupt the sleep of those intolerant to gluten by triggering an immune response like pathogens do, including viruses, yeast, and bacteria, all of which have the ability to disrupt sleep

Answer 179

Incorrect. This version illogically jumps from 'pathogens do' to introducing a list of examples of pathogens. The list should follow DIRECTLY after 'pathogens' and not after 'pathogens do'.

Question 180

'as' can be used as a preposition or a conjunction. 'like' can be used only as a preposition, hence it has to be followed by a noun/noun phrase/pronoun. It CANNOT be followed by a clause or a verb. 'as' can be followed by a clause or a verb. It is used when two clauses are being compared. 'as' cannot be followed by a noun/noun phrase/pronoun ALONE. KEY : Find out what is being compared and then select between 'like' and 'as' 'like' conveys 'in the manner of' If you're using 'as' and as a consequence, comparing clauses, make sure that the clauses being compared are logical. Eg : As do little songbirds that would ordinarily learn to sing by imitating their parents, a human may not learn how to sing, through not having, as a baby, parents to imitate. Here, though the usage of 'as do' is correct, the comparison of what songbirds to with what a human may not do is not logical. Eg : As is ordinary chocolate, which can be soft and sweet or dark and bitter, white chocolate contains most of the same ingredients. Illogical comparison between how ordinary chocolate is with what white chocolate contains.

Answer 180

Correct : Just as eating a vegan diet is good for the body, drinking organic coffee regularly is good for the mind. We are comparing 'eating a vegan diet....FOR THE BODY' with 'drinking organic coffee....FOR THE MIND' which are both clauses. Note that we are NOT comparing 'vegan diet' to 'organic coffee' Correct : Stephen revolutionized our understanding of time and space, as Einstein and Planck had before him. We are comparing two clauses 'Einstein...him' and 'Stephen...space'. Hence, we need 'as' Structures like 'as though' and 'as if' are also commonly used and they function same as 'as'. NOTE : in these cases, if doesn't follow the 'if/whether' logic requirement. Eg : The judge is acting as if she would prefer to be home today. The judge is acting as though she would prefer to be home today. Tricky correct : The taxi driver was looking around like someone who had never before been to London. Correct : The shy student's actions were like those of an extrovert. Doozy : Choose the correct answer 1) The 14 year old girl playing bass with the band that was playing in the park was slapping the strings like a veteran with decades of training and experience. 2) The 14 year old girl playing bass with the band that was playing in the park was slapping the strings like a veteran with decades of training and experience would. 1) Is correct since 2) uses 'like' to compare a clause/SV pair 'a veteran.... WOULD' Further, 1) is not ambiguous since strings would not be 'like a veteran'. Ambiguous means both alternatives make sense. Here, only one alternative makes sense, the other is stupid.

Question 181

Is this statement correct? if not, what's wrong? As she prepares for the marathon, Alessandra is consuming less pasta and cookies

Answer 181

Incorrect. Although the usage of 'less' with 'pasta' is correct since 'pasta' is uncountable, the usage of 'less' with 'cookies' is incorrect. It should be : As she prepares for the marathon, Alessandra is consuming less pasta and fewer cookies. (The above applies to less/fewer, much/many, number/amount etc.)

Question 182

Is this statement correct? if not, what's wrong? With each passing year, the minimum wage provides families with less security and opportunity, which may mean less educational and economic opportunity for their children later in life.

Answer 182

DOOZY ALERT The first usage of 'opportunity' in 'security and opportunity' is to refer to the general concept of it hence it is uncountable. However, the second usage in 'educational and economic opportunity' refers to actual opportunities hence countable. Hence, we need 'fewer' as in 'fewer educational and economic opportunities'

Question 183

Don't blindly apply common logic to ascertain if something is countable/uncountable. YOU ALWAYS NEED TO USE SENTENCE CONTEXT.

Answer 183

Incorrect :Because of changing tastes, in recent years, the bakery has sold fewer pie and cake than it sold in the past. 'Pie' and 'Cake' in this context is uncountable, hence 'fewer' is incorrect. It should be 'less' Had it been 'pies' and 'cakes', fewer would be correct.

Question 184

fish is BOTH SINGULAR AND PLURAL form, use context to check.

Answer 184

VERY USEFUL : If the plural form is used, then it is in countable form. EXCEPT for time, money and weight.

Question 185

Is this statement correct? if not, what's wrong? Visitors to the chocolate expo were amazed by how many chocolate the exhibitors had on display.

Answer 185

THIS IS WHAT I MEANT WHEN I SAID TO USE CONTEXT AND NOT COMMON LOGIC TO CHECK IF COUNTABLE OR UNCOUNTABLE. Here, chocolate is uncountable, hence 'much' should be used.

Question 186

Is this statement correct? if not, what's wrong? Every day a huge number of acreage of rainforest is chopped down or burned in the process of clearing land for agricultural use.

Answer 186

Incorrect. Although 'acres' is a countable noun, 'acreage' is not. So using 'number' with 'acreage' is incorrect. SMART MOVE : Can use context clue of verb 'is' to know that it is uncountable Every day a huge amount of acreage of rainforest is chopped down or burned in the process of clearing land for agricultural use. Every day a huge number of acres of rainforest are chopped down or burned in the process of clearing land for agricultural use.

Question 187

Time, Money, and weight are treated as uncountable nouns UNLESS the units themselves are being counted. You need to understand if the sentence is talking about the money, time or weight as a quantity/concept/thing or about the actual units themselves. VVV IMPORTANT : Here's a hack which seems to be working so far : If there is a number attached to it '2 dollars, 5 hours etc.' then use uncountable form. But if there is no number attached to it, use countable form. "Lesser" means inferior, while "less" relates to quantity. For quantity comparison, only use little, less and least for uncountable.

Answer 187

Time, money or weight as a quantity : 1) The account currently holds LESS than 2 dollars. 2) The sun will set LESS than 5 hours from now. 3) Eight kilograms is not MUCH more that the weight of an average sized cat. About the actual units themselves : 1) How MANY minutes are left? 2) MANY Euros have been spent on the repairs of the building TRICKY : Some people felt that 2 Billion Euros was too MUCH to spend on rebuilding a cathedral.

Question 188

Is this statement correct? if not, what's wrong? Weighing less than 100 pounds though armed with confidence, Jerrie Mock became the first woman flying around the world solo and returning to her hometown.

Answer 188

Incorrect. 'though' means 'in spite of'. The sentence suggests that Jerrie weighed less than 100 pounds in spite of being armed with confidence. Use of continuous 'flying' and 'returning' conveys that Jerrie is continuously flying around the world solo and returning to Jerrie's hometown, as if on an ongoing or non stop basis.

Question 189

Is this statement correct? if not, what's wrong? By using an array of decoratively carved fruits, such as kiwis, grapefruit, and melons, along with a large amount of chocolate in shapes such as stars and flowers, the tables at the event were decorated by the caterers. Multiple checks can be performed with an adverbial modifier : 1) Does taking the agent of the clause being modified to perform the action of the modifier make sense? 2) Does applying the modification to the entire target clause make sense?

Answer 189

Incorrect 'By using ....' is a prepositional phrase which is acting adverbially. Hence, it takes the subject of the clause it is modifying as the agent. Hence, it reads as : the tables 'by using an array...' were decorated by the caterers. As if the tables used the array. Similar incorrect sentence : To decorate the tables at the event, an array of fruits was used by the caterers. Incorrectly states that the array of fruits had an intention of decorating the tables at the event and therefore was used by the caterers

Question 190

VERY VERY IMPORTANT : If something acts as a noun modifier, it has to follow the touch rule. Participial phrases that come at the start or the middle act as noun modifiers hence need to modify the noun structures that touch them. In case of participial phrases that come at the end or prepositional phrases acting adverbially, note that they act adverbially hence they modify the entire clause. In that case, they need not follow the touch rule, they merely need to take the subject of the previous clause as their agent. VERY IMPORTANT : We know that prep phrases that act adverbially can be checked by placing them after the verb but this is just a check. After we assert that it acts adverbially, it will MODIFY THE ENTIRE CLAUSE so it's effect is NOT JUST ON THE VERB BUT ON THE ENTIRE CLAUSE. Eg : The survival of woodpeckers depends on the presence of certain items on which woodpeckers feed, such as nuts, berries and seeds, and, in forests, many can be found on five continents. Here 'in forests' acts adverbially so it modifies the whole of 'many...continents' so it conveys the wrong notion that 5 continents are 'in forests'. However, it does NOT MEAN 'many can be found IN FORESTS on five continents' or 'on five continents in forests' since this case it modifies only the verb and NOT THE ENTIRE CLAUSE. Also, 'in forests' doesn't act as an adjective since then it will modify 'many' and if it does, it doesn't make sense to say that many which are in forests can be found on five continents. How can something that is in forest be found in 5 continents?

Answer 190

'being' can be used as a noun or a verb corectly. But if it being used a modifier, it cannot be used to describe a state, it can however in some cases describe an ongoing action. The 'Being' is not used to describe a state; it is used to describe an ongoing action such as 'the tree is being uprooted' The defense lawyer and witnesses portrayed the accused as a victim of circumstance; his life being uprooted by the media pressure to punish someone in the case -> Incorrect Source : https://gmatclub.com/forum/experts-topic-of-the-week-6-4-17-being-is-not-the-enemy-242299.html

Question 191

VERY IMPORTANT QUESTION : Inuits of the Bering Sea were [in isolation from contact with Europeans longer than] Aleuts or Inuits of the North Pacific and northern Alaska. 1) isolated from contact with Europeans longer than 2) isolated from contact with Europeans longer than were

Answer 191

2 is correct Ambiguity is a deal breaker. You see that both 1 and 2 use ellipsis. But ellipsis usage in 1 leads to AMBIGUITY as in are we comparing 'Inuits of the Bering Sea were in isolation... longer than Aleuts or Inuits... Alaska' i.e. Inuits were isolated from both Europeans and Aleuts but they were isolated from Europeans for longer or are we comparing 'Inuits of the Bering Sea were in isolation longer than Aleuts or Inuits.... WERE' i.e. both Inuits and Aleuts were isolated from the Europeans but Inuits were isolated for longer Usage of 'were' in 2 makes it clear and the ellipsis usage makes it concise. Also note that the overall structure after ellipsis is a bit wonky in 2 (you can't replace any parts of the sentence for it to make sense without rearranging to Aleuts or the north pacific and northern Alaska were isolated from contact with Europeans) but that is still correct.

Question 192

'Greater than' vs 'More than': Note than 'greater than' is same as 'larger than' and 'higher than' Now to decide which one to use, move 'greater/larger/higher' to before the noun being compared and do the same to 'more'. Now, pick whichever makes more sense. Eg : All of the below are correct, do the above to validate : 1) Her dislike of gambling is greater than her dislike of exercise (greater dislike of gambling > more dislike of gambling) 2) Sara has more space than Olivia has (more space > greater space) 3) The amount of space that Sara has is greater than the amount that Olivia has (greater amount of space > more amount of space) 3) In Khar, the average selling price for a new home is more than the average selling price in Powai (higher average selling > more average selling price) If you’re comparing numbers themselves – not quantity in general, but actual numbers – it’s generally better to use “greater than” instead of “more than.” For example, you would read the mathematical expression 20 > 10 as “twenty is greater than ten.” For quantities, use 'more than'

Answer 192

The probe can travel without melting through coronal material at temperatures greater than a million degrees Celsius. Here the item being compared is 'temperatures' and NOT 'million degrees Celsius'. Hence, check against 'temperatures' to see that 'higher' > 'more'

Question 193

Incorrect comparisons : Incorrect | Correct Greater as | Greater than more/fewer/less...as | more/fewer/less.....than so.....as | as ..... as as....than | as ..... as such....like | such.....as 'as tall or taller than X' | 'as tall as or taller than X' Eg : Stress management can for some people experiencing depression be equally effective as medication. Here, 'equally' is incorrectly used with 'as' as 'equally...as' structure. Further, 'as...as' is the same as 'equally'. Hence, using both is redundant. Similar examples : 'as equally effective as', 'equally effective like'

Answer 193

Are the following correct or incorrect : 1) The goal of the team was to complete the course as much faster than the previous record holder had as possible 2) Because of the presence of special particles, lighting strikes twice as often in shipping lanes than it does in other parts of the ocean with similar climatic conditions. 1) Correct, 'much faster than' embedded in 'as...as' structure which is correct 2) Incorrect, 'as...than' is incorrect.

Question 194

VERY IMPORTANT : Although the probability of a dog's responding to its name is greater than that of a cat, research shows that I am stupid. Here, it is evident that 'that' is used in its demonstrative form but it will stand for 'the probability' and NOT 'the probability of responding to its name' since that phrase doesn't exist in the sentence. Hence, the usage above will read as 'is greater than the probability of a cat' which is illogical. Similar example : While the Chrysler building in New York has 25 fewer floors than those of the more well-known Empire State Building, it still attracts tourists. Here, 'those' will stand for 'floors'

Answer 194

'Whereas'/'While'/'Although' are different from 'Unlike' When a comparison uses 'unlike', the two elements being compared have to SIMILAR LOGICALLY. Eg : Correct : Unlike Stacy, Becky is hot. Incorrect : Unlike computers made today, using a computer 50 years ago required a lot of technical knowledge. Tricky Incorrect : Unlike tropical areas, which are being rapidly deforested, the forests in temperate areas are recovering. Reason for incorrect : you cannot compare 'tropical areas' with 'forests in temperate areas' But these restrictions DO NOT APPLY to 'Whereas'/'While'/'Although' Eg : Although she was running on the beach, no sand got into her hair. While we love the mountains, swimming in the ocean is a great way to spend a summer afternoon. Clauses connected by 'Whereas'/'While'/'Although' don't have to be particularly similar to each other.

Question 195

Pick between the two : 1) Whereas the paintings of Pollock are completely non-representational, elements that represent real world objects are included among those of Henry Moore's sculptures 2) In comparison with Jackson Pollock's completely non-representational paintings are the elements of Henry Moore's sculptures, among which are some that represent real-world objects.

Answer 195

1) Is correct 'those' refers to 'elements' correctly. 2) is incorrect because it compares paintings with elements of sculptures. Further, it does NOT actually express a comparison. It rather expresses an idea that the paintings are 'in comparison' with the elements.

Question 196

'As opposed to' does NOT mean 'unlike'. It means 'rather than' or 'not' More than are wolves, coyotes are smaller, more adaptive relatives of wolves and are inhabitants of Colaba. The above illogically means that that coyotes are smaller, more adaptive relatives of wolves more than wolves are smaller, more adaptive relatives of wolves.

Answer 196

Pick between the two : 1) Researchers who have compared the two approaches say that manual therapy and steroid injections are equally effective in relieving shoulder pain. 2) Researchers who have compared the two approaches say that manual therapy and steroid injections are both equally effective in relieving shoulder pain. 1) is Correct, 2) leads to the incomplete comparison : 'manual therapy and steroid injections are both equally effective as WHAT?'

Question 197

IMPORTANT : Native advertising, adheres to the form and style of the primary content on a given platform, making advertisements more difficult to recognize, particularly on social media websites, than other websites. NOTE that 'social media websites' and 'other websites' CANNOT be compared since the former appears within THE MODIFYING NON ESSENTIAL PHRASE. Plus the 'more...than' structure doesn't work in a way to support comparison of social media websites with other websites.

Answer 197

The results of surveys of potential voters indicate that the independent candidate is more likely to win this year's election compared with last year's : Incorrect, the comparison is not complete since 'compared with' cannot replace 'than' in a comparison 'more likely... than...'

Question 198

It' pronouns ('it' and 'its') can only ever refer to grammatically singular nouns. 'They' pronouns ('they', 'them', and 'their') can only ever refer to grammatically plural nouns "they/them" can most definitely be used for non-living things as well

Answer 198

John ran down the street AS the dog barked : basically means John ran down the street WHEN the dog barked and NOT 'HOW/WHY'.

Question 199

Generally, the pronoun will refer to the exact noun, as in noun + adjective (singe word adjective/prep phrase/participial phrase etc.). Only a demonstrative pronoun, such as "that," in a comparison will refer to only the core noun. The little girl was ecstatic when her grandfather presented her with the completed dollhouse on her sixth birthday, which he has built for months, but she hardly plays with it anymore. Incorrect. 'which he has built for months' modifies 'her sixth birthday' which is incorrect. It cannot modify 'dollhouse on her sixth birthday' since 'on her sixth bday' prep phrase acts adverbially and not as an adjective and does NOT modify birthday.

Answer 199

VVV IMPORTANT : Earth's average global temperature, being a critical measure of Earth's ability to sustain the existence of its many species, increased by roughly 1.4 degrees Fahrenheit since about 1900. Incorrect, by using the participial phrase 'being a critical measure...', the sentence conveys the illogical meaning that ,as a result of 'being a critical measure' , the average global temperature increased. Basically, the test you used to do with present participial applies even when the participial phrase modifies a single word. Earth's average global temperature, which is critical when measuring Earth's ability to sustain the existence of its many species, increased by roughly 1.4 degrees Fahrenheit since about 1900. Incorrect, there is no actor for 'when measuring..' expect the Earth's average global temperature hence it illogically conveys that when the average global temperature is measuring, it is critical and when it is not measuring, it is not critical.

Question 200

There is a diff between 'free from' and 'free of' : diet free from animal products : diet could be free from animal products, as if the diet has escaped from/been liberated from animal products diet free of animal products : correct

Answer 200

The oldest continental rocks are about 4 billion years old and are found in cratons, surviving several successive supercontinent cycles. => Interpret as 'the rocks by surviving several successive supercontinent cycles, the rocks are abut 4 billion years old AND are found in cratons' or 'the rocks by being 4 bil years old AND being found in cratons are SURVIVING several supercontinent cycles' : Both interpretations are illogical btw. Point to understand is that if you present participial modifying a clause which is composed of two parts joined by 'AND', apply the logic to both the parts connected by 'AND' SIMULTANEOUSLY.

Question 201

In 1988, CF had made his debut at the Kurla station as DS, who was regarded as his signature role, and returned there in 1990 as DR. The above is incorrect because : 1) A role 'DS' cannot be a 'who' since it is a thing. IMPORTANT: 2) The opening modifier 'in 1988' applies to the entire structure that follows since it is one long independent clause. Hence, it reads 'in 1988, CF returned in 1990' As one of the greatest painters, VVG was not painting before his late twenties. Incorrect : The choice conveys the illogical meaning that, as one of the greatest painters, VVG was NOT painting. Also, the use of past continuous 'was not painting' does not convey a clear meaning. It doesn't clearly indicate that he did not paint UNTIL his late twenties. It instead expresses that, at some point before his late twenties, he was not painting. Similar : Even though he was one of history's greatest painters, VVG did not begin painting until his late twenties. => Conveys that even though VVG was one of greatest painters, he did not start painting until late twenties, as if he was one of the greatest painters BEFORE he started painting.

Answer 201

While travelling to work, a miner's headlamp was used by financier Michael Milken in order to read on the bus, which he took, rather than the train, in order to avoid running into colleagues. Incorrect : 1) The opening modifier 'while travelling to work' acts adverbially but takes the subject as the agent leading to the meaning 'the headlamp was travelling to work'. MADE THIS ERROR SO MANY TIMES, ITS PATHETIC. VERY IMPORTANT AND SUBTLE 2) The usage of passive voice 'a miner's headlamp was used' puts the spot light on the headlamp so 'a miner's headlamp ..was used in order to read on the bus' means that the headlamp was used so that the miner's headlamp could read on the bus. Similar example : Financier Michael used a miner's headlamp in order to read while travelling to work on the bus, which was taken by him, in order to avoid running into colleagues. Incorrect : The passive voice usage in 'was taken' makes the bus the focus of the relative clause 'which was taken by him' which goes on to convey the illogical meaning that the bus was taken in order for the bus to avoid running into colleagues. Correct : Financier Michael used a miner's headlamp in order to read while travelling to work on the bus, which he took, rather than the train, in order to avoid running into colleagues. => uses active 'he took'

Question 202

'this' can only be an article, not a pronoun. https://gmatclub.com/forum/hurricanes-at-first-begin-traveling-from-east-to-west-because-that-di-199871.html 'when' is only used to refer to a point in time, not for conditional statements : https://gmatclub.com/forum/rising-inventories-when-unaccompanied-correspondingly-by-increases-in-97784.html

Answer 202

instead of CAN NEVER be followed by a preposition such as on, at etc. instead of is generally followed by a noun or a noun phrase.-( Instead is followed by of , which is preposition ) Generally, Instead of is almost same as rather than BUT rather than can be followed by a preposition such as on, at etc. Eliminating D and E is v tricky : https://gmatclub.com/forum/neuroscientists-having-amassed-a-wealth-of-knowledge-over-the-past-96386.html

Question 203

'found.... to be....' is correct, 'found .....as....' is NOT. 'X is to Y what A is to B' is correct, 'X is to Y similar to A is to B' is NOT

Answer 203

“not just A…but also B" is a correct idiomatic construction; A and B must be parallel. Good way to detect un-idiomatic expressions : https://gmatclub.com/forum/according-to-some-economists-the-july-decrease-in-unemployment-so-168153.html

Question 204

Notice how both B and C are essentially correct but B is more correct. Don't rack your brains deciding why C is incorrect on the exam : https://gmatclub.com/forum/in-ancient-thailand-much-of-the-local-artisans-creative-energy-was-125866.html

Answer 204

Rather than - shows preference. 1) . We ought to invest in machinery rather than buildings. 2) . I prefer starting early rather than leaving things to the last minute. Instead of - suggests that one person, thing or action replaces another. 1). I'll have tea instead of coffee, please.

Question 205

"no X and Y" implies that there wasn't (both X and Y), but there might have been either only X or only Y. We need to "no X or Y" to indicate that there wasn't any of X or Y.

Answer 205

there is redundancy in "equally important as." X can be as important as Y. X and Y can be equally important. But X cannot be equally important as Y. Tricky : https://gmatclub.com/forum/in-early-mesopotamian-civilization-castor-oil-served-not-only-as-a-la-242640.html

Question 206

'likely that' is wrong, 'likely to' is correct. VV Good explanation of ellipsis : https://gmatclub.com/forum/traffic-safety-officials-predict-that-drivers-will-be-equally-likely-215768.html

Answer 206

Re-run through all the questions you got wrong on GMATCLUB, not all are captured in these notes. Tricky : https://gmatclub.com/forum/most-of-the-country-s-biggest-daily-newspapers-had-lower-circulation-242378.html

Question 207

See how 'which' is being used incorrectly and why option A is incorrect in its usage of consist: https://gmatclub.com/forum/yellow-jackets-number-among-the-900-or-so-species-of-the-world-s-socia-13500.html

Answer 207

Tricky verb : https://gmatclub.com/forum/not-trusting-themselves-to-choose-wisely-among-the-wide-array-of-inves-204265.html Nice demo of how non essential phrases can change the meaning : https://gmatclub.com/forum/fossils-of-the-arm-of-a-sloth-found-in-puerto-rico-in-1991-and-dated-77781.html

Question 208

Tricky Ellipsis : Note on ellipses in comparisons: As long as the verb of comparison is in the same tense for both items of comparison, you do not need to repeat the verb (you can but don't need to). Ex. I ate dinner at the same time as my brother ('did'-- optional). https://gmatclub.com/forum/salt-deposits-and-moisture-threaten-to-destroy-the-mohenjo-daro-excava-6837.html

Answer 208

The phrase "excepting for" is not an acceptable idiom in English. "Except in" or "with the exception of" are the correct forms of this idiom. Began is the past tense form of begin and is used in a simple past tense sentence. Begun is the past participle of begin and is typically used with a form of the helping verb have.

Question 209

Tricky, different type of error : https://gmatclub.com/forum/sunspots-vortices-of-gas-associated-with-strong-electromagnetic-79261.html Last vs past I would say that last 2 days refers to the 2 days that terminate any period, regardless of where that period is located in time. For example, you can say: I felt really bad during the last 2 days of that trip in 1998. The past 2 days refers to the 2 days preceding the moment of speaking. So it cannot be used as above.

Answer 209

'named for X' is also correct construct : https://gmatclub.com/forum/even-though-clovis-points-spear-points-with-longitudinal-grooves-chip-36996.html As long as the main clause's verb is in neither the past nor the past perfect tense, the verb of the subordinate clause can be in any tense that conveys meaning accurately. When the main clause verb is in the past or past perfect, however, the verb in the subordinate clause must be in the past or past perfect.

Question 210

IMPORTANT : “dated at” is preferred to “dated to be”, the same construction is not necessarily true for “estimated at” and “estimated to be” construction. “Estimated at” should be followed by a noun because “at” is a preposition. E.g: The molten iron is estimated at 1500 degrees Celsius. “Estimated to be” generally follows phrases E.g: The fossil is estimated to be 1000 years old. https://gmatclub.com/forum/rock-samples-taken-from-the-remains-of-an-asteroid-about-twice-the-213736.html

Answer 210

Tricky : https://gmatclub.com/forum/according-to-a-recent-poll-owning-and-living-in-a-freestanding-house-107775.html When you're checking it is a clause or a phrase after 'like/as', remember to check what comes before also. MAKE SURE COMPARISONS ARE LOGICAL. Good tricky question, check out Experts Global's solution : https://gmatclub.com/forum/a-proposal-has-been-made-to-trim-the-horns-from-rhinoceroses-to-discou-68546.html SUPER TRICKY : https://gmatclub.com/forum/galileo-was-convinced-that-natural-phenomena-as-manifestations-of-the-69817.html Notice how 'as' hides a clause using ellipsis

Question 211

'in order that' is wrong. 'in order to' and 'so that' are correct. Tricky question, look at the meaning part : https://gmatclub.com/forum/archaeologists-in-ireland-believe-that-a-recently-discovered-chalice-48761.html

Answer 211

The infinitive verb form ("to + base form of verb" - "to + be" in this sentence) is the preferred construction for referring to the purpose/intent of an action. Tricky, read explanations : https://gmatclub.com/forum/consumers-may-not-think-of-household-cleaning-products-to-be-hazardous-83299.html Superr tricky , read my notes on gmatclub: https://gmatclub.com/forum/linking-arrangements-among-secondary-schools-and-the-workplace-never-294390.html

Question 212

Now generally when two clauses have the same subject, we avoid using a "comma" while joining the two. I study in the morning , and i play in the evening --> incorrect Common subject: " I" correct version: I study in the morning and play in the evening --> We dont even need to repeat the subject. Super super tricky question, read both magoosh guy and sgrover18's explanation : https://gmatclub.com/forum/the-type-of-behavior-exhibited-when-an-animal-recognizes-itself-in-a-m-220699.html

Answer 212

X nor Y = WRONG Neither X and Y = WRONG Neither X or Y = WRONG Neither X nor Y = CORRECT Tricky double negative usage : https://gmatclub.com/forum/in-the-early-part-of-the-twentieth-century-many-vacationers-found-tha-72762.html 'Because of the result of X' is redundant. it is either 'because of X' or 'as a result of X'

Question 213

'second only' is diff from 'only second' | https://gmatclub.com/forum/over-the-past-ten-years-cultivated-sunflowers-have-become-a-major-comm-268565.html

Answer 213

Very tricky, notice how even though B is grammatically correct, it is logically wrong since we need parallelism here since both are suggestions. : https://gmatclub.com/forum/the-normative-model-of-strategic-decision-making-suggests-that-99971.html

Question 214

Remember that opening modifier (prep phrase) modifies what comes after as its agent : https://gmatclub.com/forum/when-viewed-from-the-window-of-a-speeding-train-the-speed-with-which-268568.html 'as the means for' prisoner reform is unidiomatic -- should be 'as the means of'

Answer 214

Can't believe I took so long to understand this : • In a “noun + comma + phrase” construction, the phrase must correctly modify the noun; this is one of the most frequently tested concepts on GMAT sentence correction. • "who/whose/whom/which/where", when preceded by a comma, refer to the noun just before the comma. https://gmatclub.com/forum/the-computer-company-has-announced-that-it-will-purchase-the-82469.html

Question 215

Superlative form requires 'the' + x : Three most prominent companies => Incorrect The three most prominent companies => Correct https://gmatclub.com/forum/of-all-the-record-companies-involved-in-early-jazz-the-three-most-pro-221380.html 'permission to' vs 'permission for' : 1) They are denied permission for participating in the rave 2) They are denied permission to participate in the rave. 1) means that they were denied permission because they participated in the rave 2) means that they are denied permission to participate in the rave in the first place.

Answer 215

although = can be replaced with the phrase "despite the fact that" and it will still make sense Although we were 20 minutes late to the movie, we didn't miss anything. --> Despite the fact that we were 20 minutes late, we didn't miss anything. = OK My bike tire is flat, although I made it home on time anyway. --> My bike tire is flat, despite the fact that I made it home on time anyway. = WRONG but = used to show contrast; does not mean the same thing as "despite the fact that" My bike tire is flat, but I made it home on time anyway. --> OK. https://gmatclub.com/forum/according-to-the-laws-of-this-nation-individuals-are-minors-until-the-294380.html

Question 216

Aim to vs Aim at Vs with Aim of Aim to (idiom) Meaning - Try or intend to do something. e.g : We aim to please our customers, or She aims to fly to California. Correct usage: aim to + verb With the Aim Of: b. Joe is writing the book with the aim of finishing it by the end of this month. Note:With the aim to is unidiomatic Aim at (idiom) Meaning - Direct a missile or criticism at something or someone; to plan, intend or to have as one's purpose e.g: In his last speech the President took aim at the opposition leader. He aims at finishing tomorrow.

Answer 216

Incorrect : Testify about Correct : Testify against, Testify for, and Testify to There's a difference in meaning between "may not" and "might not." Consider two examples: 1) Tim's daughter may not go to the dance with the boy sporting the tattoo of Barry Manilow on his face. Here, "may not" means "does not have permission." So, Tim's daughter has been forbidden to go to the dance with a weirdo, and Tim can rest easy. 2) Tim's daughter might not go to the dance with the boy sporting the tattoo of Barry Manilow on his face. Now, "might not" means there's a possibility that something won't happen. So there's still a real chance that Tim's daughter will be attending the dance with a shady character.

Question 217

Non essential modifiers can make a lot of difference to the meaning of a sentence : https://gmatclub.com/forum/as-opposed-to-adults-pound-for-pound-children-breathe-twice-a-321753.html

Answer 217

Very tricky : https://gmatclub.com/forum/according-to-its-proponents-a-proposed-new-style-of-aircraft-could-63927.html Check it's notes